Carts get the brakes in Golden Gate

New technology will put the brakes on shopping cart theft at one Golden Gate shopping center thanks to the new Gatekeeper program at Kash and Karry. Community leaders couldn't be happier.

"It's a major leap from the many years we have been wrangling with the issue of abandoned shopping carts around town," says Golden Gate Community Oriented Policing Deputy Rob Capizzi.

"We've tried just about everything from drafting legislation to organizing our own cart collections through the community and nothing has worked. This is a walking community. As the population grows, so does the problem, and we just couldn't seem to get our arms around it."

According to store manager Marion Orr, sensors around the perimeter of the store will cause the wheels to lock if users attempt to take the cart off-site.

Orr says the decision to install the system was based on citizen complaints on abandoned carts, staff time spent to address the problem and store losses due to cart theft.

"I've talked with residents who were concerned with carts all over their neighborhoods," he said. "It doesn't look good. We've been sending an associate out two times a week to drive around and collect the carts. It takes about two hours. That's a lot of time and there are also liability concerns. It makes more sense in the long run to spend the money and get a better system in place."

Orr estimates his store was losing up to 80 shopping carts a month. At $150-$200 a cart, that adds up to a potential loss of $16,000 a month.

By installing the new $20,000 system, he predicts the store will quickly see the benefit.

Capizzi hopes that kind of savings will encourage other local retailers to follow suit.

"Since Kash and Karry has taken the forefront, we need the others to get on board," he says. "If this is successful, it will really improve the appearance of the community."

K-Mart manager Mary Bullock said she knew of the program, but could not speak on behalf of the corporation. K-Mart shares the same shopping plaza with Kash and Karry. Company representatives of Sears Holding Corp., which owns K-Mart, did not return the Citizen's phone calls.

Golden Gate Winn Dixie manager Kurt Bossi says the concept sounds "too good to be true.""If it works, it's something we need to look at," he said. "I'll definitely pass the information on to my supervisors." Orr first utilized the Gatekeeper program while managing a Food Lion store in Maryland, in a "pedestrian community" similar to Golden Gate.

He transferred to the Naples area to oversee the conversion of the Kash and Karry into a Sweetbay Supermarket, which will hold its grand opening on June 24.

Orr says he has not had any negative comments on the Gatekeeper program since it began three weeks ago, but says he understands there will be customers who rely on being able to transport their groceries with the store's carts.

To address the problem, he is considering giving away small, personal, foldable carts during the store's grand opening.

"I think more people will be happy about it than those who will be unhappy," he says. "The only comments I've received were from three ladies, who were happy and thanked me for having it."

The cart program is one of several improvements to the store under its new name and expansion, which will include a larger selection of produce, seafood, breads, fresh bakery goods, and deli items. Orr said the Golden Gate store will mirror the selection of the new Sweetbay at Vanderbilt Road and Collier Boulevard with the exception of the two magnolia trees in the produce section.

"They are very popular with customers," Orr said of the trees. "That store was built from the ground up so the plantings were included in the design. This was a conversion to an existing store so it would have been very expensive to add the magnolia trees."