Foodstuffs

I'm at a bit of a loss as to why the federal goverment is giving an East Liberty organization a $700,000 grant to open a Shop 'n' Save across the street from an existing Giant Eagle, and not far from a Whole Foods grocery store. (Full disclosure: My father works for Giant Eagle in their corporate HQ.) The store is supposed to create 500 jobs, but it could just as easily cannibalize business from the other two. (I realize Whole Foods isn't in quite the same category as Giant Eagle and Shop 'n' Save. Whole Foods, incidentally, was the beneficiary of a similar grant.) Competition is a good thing, but not when one side gets a boost from government. (Giant Eagle certainly isn't clean--several of their stores have been the beneficiary of tax-increment financing.)