Food Feud in Fruita

Driving into Fruita along Broadway many people have cast a sideways glance, and nothing much more than that, at the new construction next to McDonalds. Not many second thoughts are given towards the new site, although there should be! Rumors of a Starbucks and Popeyes being moved into the building have floated around lately.

While the rumors have not yet been confirmed by any  companies working on the site, students are regardless excited to hear the potential news. Gaby Bowman, a sophomore at FMHS, says that “it’s taken long enough” for a Starbucks to be built here.

Kolby Turner, also a sophomore, has commented that he believes “it’s pretty neat” as well.

There has, however, been worry for the local businesses in Fruita. Small coffee shops such as Heavenly Grounds and Morning Mission could possibly lose business with the building  of another Starbucks. Many students will not hesitate to choose the more-popular Starbucks smaller shops. The diverse menu and overall fad of going to Starbucks will, for many students, overthrow their want to support local businesses.

Not everyone is completely thrilled, either! Some students, like Sarah Mahoney, say that the new coffee shop “won’t really affect [them] and [they] don’t really care.” Mahoney’s mom owns her own private coffee cart, Sip, which caters to private events such as weddings and baby showers. She never has to worry about paying the high prices of Starbucks with her mom’s barista skills.

No one is talking much about the proposed Popeyes that will be sharing a building with Starbucks, either because they don’t know about it or have no interest in it. But there is only one Popeyes in the Grand Valley, and it’s all the way in Clifton. So those people that “love that chicken from Popeyes,” but live in Fruita or Grand Junction, have had to make the commute. That won’t be the case once the building is finished and business is up and running. A student who requested to remain anonymous has said that she, “think[s] that Popeyes is not the best use of that building because we can find a different business that isn’t already in the Valley to put there that would get more business.”

Regardless if you are excited for Starbucks and Popeyes or not, the news will be running through the school and students will be eager to flood the doors once it opens. We will all be eagerly awaiting to get our fix of caffeine and croissants, as well as chicken if Popeyes is an interest, in the coming days.

Photo By: Teton Gravity Research