When Vista Foods closed its 122 McGregor St. location in January, 2008, the West Side lost its only full-service grocery stores. The closing forced neighborhood residents to drive — if they happened to own a car, that is — across the river, or to Goffstown or Bedford to buy their groceries

But even the most unfortunate of circumstances sometimes have silver linings, I thought at the time. Indeed, that space be great for a Trader Joe’s, I decided. It would be great for the West Side and great for me personally, since I don’t like having to drive down to Tyngsboro, Mass., which is the location of the Trader Joe’s nearest Manchester. I even went so far as to suggest to the company that they open a Trader Joe’s in the old Vista Foods location:

Unfortunately, that suggestion didn’t go anywhere. Word on the street is that the current owner of the entire plaza, Rite Aid, is not interested in having a next-door neighbor and would rather the space remain empty than rent it to anyone that might be a competitor in any way, shape or form — can’t have them selling fruits and vegetables that people might prefer to the chips and candy sold at the drug store. That seems to be why they practically forced Vista to leave by refusing to give the store’s parent company, Associated Grocers of New England, a long-term lease that included a provision allowing them to make much-needed improvements to the old, run-down store.

That fact that the West Side is in need of a grocery store that can be safely reached on foot by neighborhood residents — including the senior citizens living across the street at the Pariseau high rise — doesn’t seem matter at all to the Rite Aid folks. And why should it, what with all decisions about the property being made 425 miles away at Rite Aid’s corporate headquarters in Camp Hill, Penn.? The people calling the shots there aren’t worried about the needs of the West Side of Manchester, N.H. All they want is our money.

Such is the nature of corporate capitalism, I suppose, wherein cities and towns trade control of their local economies to nonresident investors in exchange for “growth” and “investment” and low-wage jobs.

What’s needed at the old Vista Foods location, even more than a Trader Joe’s, is local ownership. A perfect solution, to my mind, is a food co-op, along the lines of the Concord Cooperative Market. This co-op is a natural foods grocery store and café that is actually owned (and cooperatively operated) by more than 2,000 households in the greater Concord area.

As a result, the co-op is responsive to the needs of its community where it is located. As it should be.