Fast Food Zoning

I'm all for personal freedom, as well as personal responsibility, but for a lot of people, intervention from the "Nanny State" is the only thing that will help them. I'm sure a huge amount of people in the Bronx don't own a car, so cannot just drive to the nearest supermarket or health food store for groceries. (I noticed a serious lack of supermarkets in NY city, where the heck do New Yorkers go for groceries?)

So, they have to eat what is around them, and if the fast food outlets around them are limited to a certain number, then the opportunity for other food outlets to open becomes available. Perhaps it would work best in tandem with a local healthy eating education campaign. Oh, and we can't leave out junk food tax hikes to make fast food that little bit less accessible.

Calistoga, CA and Concorde, Mass sound like great places to live

They did an experiment like that in a subdivision of Middleton, WI near where I used to live. It was a reconstructed Victorian neighborhood where everything was accessible by foot or bicycle. It was designed to be very people-oriented...the use of cars was discouraged unless the trip was outside of the subdivision, there were NO chain stores, no franchised restaurants, etc....there were several small family owned restaurants and they got a LOT of business. Hey, where else are people going to go when there isn't a Mickey D's around, right? I thought the idea was great and the experimental neighborhood was really a big success.

It seems like a good idea, but my experience with "non-fast food" restaurants in recent years, hasn't been that great.
I have a very limited budget, and so do many others. These restaurants don't have a dollar menu. They are also incredibly slow. One reason for the success of fast food in the first place.
In my area, at least, the menus are often just as fat-laden as McDonalds et al.
I'd just as soon eat at home whenever possible, where I know I will have healthy and economical choices available.

...it's like making a "helmet law". Smart and/or informed people will make wiser choices anyway, but those who really need the help making better choices have one less "bad" option.

NYC is probably one of the best places to shop for groceries. Chinatown with fish and produce, Trader Joes, Whole Foods and one of the largest farmers' market (all year round) in Union Squre. Plus the locally owned gourmet and specialty shops and restaurants...we almost have too much choice! I haven't been to a chain restaurant in years. I think smaller towns would benefit more from a ban. We've got plenty of alternatives here...and PS New Yorkers ride the subway or walk; most of us don't own cars :-)

I don’t know why would they do that in Calistoga. It is a very small town, where all restaurants are located on one main street (Lincoln Ave). I just don’t see how McDonalds or any other fast food joint can compete with Smokehouse Café.

If you ever there, I highly recommend you try the house special – Arkansas slow pig with corn bread. It is simply out of this world.

NC, sounds like it's great shopping in the part of NYC where you live, is all that available AND affordable in the Bronx? I know Trader Joes for one has wonderful food, but is quite pricey.

Yeah, I have to agree with Caramelle-oh regarding NC's post. NC is obviously a Manhattanite who is referring to places available in the City. Most people in the outer boroughs go to the more typical supermarkets and bodegas, which are cramped and only have typical non-organic and prepackaged food, along with some ethnic fare which reflects the immediate neighborhood. Granted, there are some bakeries, fish markets and produce stands in the outer boroughs, but they're not organic and cruelty-free food choices. Having lived in Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island, I can tell you that people who live in Manhattan DON'T live the same lifestyle as people in the Bronx, or any of the other boroughs, for that matter. I personally get annoyed by the limited, privileged viewpoint represented in NC's idyllic presentation of "NYc Living" - she talks about "New Yorkers" like Manhattan is the only borough in NY. The reality for most people is much more grueling - schlepping bags and wheeled carts of groceries on the ferry or up and down subway stairs after a long day of work in order to bring that upper-middle class specialty market fare home - if you can afford it in the first place - and it ain't easy. (And by the way, many families in the outer boroughs DO use a car - another misrepresentation by NC of the full five-borough NY experience.)

Wow people...I live in the South Bronx. Used to live in Harlem, west Village, Brooklyn (East New York and Williamsburg), and Staten Island. Never owned a car in any borough, could always find fresh, and organic selections within walking distance of my home including the Bronx terminal and Brooklyn farmers market, Fairway in all boroughs, and food co-ops. Again MOST New Yorkers do not own a car (it's part of my job to keep track). Any other questions?

I agree about always seeking the state to make interventions such as a smoking ban. If we took responsibility there would be no need for a nanny state. Often these retail outlets are used because they are convenient in the short term. If we voted with out feet and took our business elsewhere they would either have to change (become healthier) or close down. Interestingly I understand that McDonalds has been dropping its healthier range... could it be that we don't even choose the healthier foods even when they are available in fast food outlets?