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Ezra Scott Sr. hosted a forum on the Ghetto Tops Thursday at Word of Life Church.
“Ghetto Tops” is the term used in the community for the Tops on Portage Road that corporate has allowed to become rundown, dirty and neglected. It also is the term used in other stores and in the corporate offices.
Members of the community have long been concerned by condition of the Tops. Those concerns have fallen on deaf ears.
The meeting Thursday only happened because Scott Sr., concerned about neglect at the store, called Tops corporate to complain a couple weeks ago. He was listened to and promised a return call that never came.
Conditions at the store drew social media ire about a year ago when Falls Councilman Donta Myles posted about witnessing cockroaches in the bread section.
Current council candidate Bryan Archie spoke Thursday about a recent experience in the store where he was talking to an employee as a mouse ran by.
Tops spent millions fixing up its stores on Military Road and Niagara Falls Boulevard within the last year. The Lewiston Tops is owned by the Dimino family family and is equally nice but shouldn’t be lumped in because it has a family behind it maintaining and improving a staple of the Lewiston community.
Scott shared a slide show focused on disparity between those corporate stores and Portage Road.
On Portage Road, the bathrooms are disgusting, the floors are yellowed and nicked, carts are dirty, damaged and don’t match. Shelves are dented.
Often, sales items are understocked and not available. Shelves, on the whole, are often empty.
Lighting is dim. There is an armed guard who rarely leaves the lobby. In the lot, there are scary people, maybe addicted, perhaps mentally ill.
After Scott’s presentation, Ken Hamilton spoke up. He said he was there as a consultant for Tops, meaning he knew Scott scheduled the meeting, contacted Tops and secured a role as a paid consultant.
Hamilton asked those present not to protest and promised a meeting with Tops executives within two weeks.
He received a negative reception from the crowd, which objected to his approach in getting involved.
Hamilton defended himself as only knowing Tops corporate because he had been in touch previously as a concerned citizen who had previously contacted Tops about the condition of its Ghetto store.
Scott promised no matter what else happens, he will be in touch with attendees via email. Hamilton confirmed Friday a meeting has been scheduled with representatives of Tops.
