Bell: Kroger don't close

NORTH TOLEDO - Toledo mayoral candidate Mike Bell pushed for Kroger to not close its Manhattan Boulevard store.

The grocery chain said in early August its Manhattan Boulevard store would be shut down in October.

Bell said the late notice is leaving residents in tough situations, and that the closing might not have happened if he were mayor.

"I'm not blaming Kroger," Bell said. "All I'm saying is that what we need to do is have a little bit more community involvement with the issues that effect people, because the adverse effect of that can be critical."

Bell's plan to have a business advocate could have come up with a solution that would have kept the doors open. He's not sure if it's possible now to change Kroger's plan to close the store.