Marilyn Helm Retailers is attempting to decide on a location for a new retail outlet. At the moment, the firm has three alternatives€“€“stay where it is but enlarge the facility; locate along the main street in nearby Newbury; or locate in a new shopping mall in Hyde Park. The company has selected the four factors listed in the following table as the basis for evaluation and has assigned weights as shown:

Helm has rated each location for each factor, on a 100-point basis. These ratings are given below:

(a) What should Helm do?
(b) A new subway station is scheduled to open across the street from the present location is about a month, so its third factor score should be raised to 40. How does this change youranswer?

Weight .30 .15 .20 .35 Factor Factor Description Average community income Community growth potential Availability of public transportation Labor availability, attitude, and cost 4 Location Fac Present Location Newbury Hyde Park 40 20 30 80 60 20 60 50 50 80 50 50 4