Canning, sustainability at Safeway, bottles

Safeway
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Happened to be near the new Safeway on west side today and saw the demolistion of the old store. Asked a couple of people what will be built, and most thought or hoped it be more parking. Parking. Anyone know?

Here's some information about the new store from Safeway's alternative energy page:

Santa Cruz Store (map)

Opening in the summer of 2009, Safeway’s Santa Cruz, California, store will shape the future of green in retail grocery. Being built from the ground up with sustainability in mind, this store is proof that sustainable innovation at Safeway knows no limits. Company developers chose an urban brownfield with ample access to public transportation... rest is here

("ample" ?)

Only the #42 (Bonnie Doon, trice a day, outbound only) and #3 (Natural Bridges, no weekend service) Metro buses stop here, so I wondered if the green Mission Street Safeway should be paying traffic mitigation/congestion fees to the city. Since the west side has been undergoing commercial and retail development, it would be nice to have more public transit and limited sprawl.

Pickling
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Since healthy pickling and preserving is high on my "to do" list, my eye then caught a sign at Ace Hardware next to Safeway about preserves, canning etc. Ace had a few shelves with all the jars, lids, gadgets, boiling pots and even pectin to get started. Pectin comes in different forms and its use is subject to discussion, so I held off for advice from a pro.

My bus was coming so I need to rush off anyway.


Plastic Bottles
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On another trip, to the east side, I visited Staff of Life where I chatted with a staff member about bulk foods and the number of plastic bags I use. I explained the real problem was I was lazy and hated to label all the bags each time. I showed him my, um, water bottle - a 2008 Beet/carrot juice plastic #2 bottle. The store had no problem if I washed it out, got the "tare" weight and used it for bulk items which I promptly did. In fact, I also bought a $2.50 funnel at the store and now the old water bottle now is filled with rye berries, yum.

Not going to save the planet this way, but I feel less guilty and feel I can now organize my life around bulk purchases: the diet coke will hold protein power, the grapefruit bottle will hold loose tea - all nicely labeled, numbered easy to store, refill (with the funnel).

Americans recycle 14% of plastic bottle, leaving 86% for landfill - but this I will cover in another entry.

By the way, Staff of Life will be building a new store in the empty lot across Soquel, which will have more seating for in-store eating.