Buzz Begins to Crown Foursquare Mayor of Wegmans

Local and national elections are held every two years, as voters elect representatives from small-town burgesses to the president of the United States.

But on the social gathering place Foursquare, a new election kicks off every 60 days.

At stake?

The honor of being crowned "mayor" of any business domain listed and "claimed" on Foursquare.

The title of mayor is bestowed upon the user who checks in to any given venue the most number of times in a 60-day period.

Six months away from the opening of Columbia's Wegmans grocery store, there's already some online chatter about who might be named the first mayor of that much-anticipated market.

Wegmans officials know of the practice but have nothing to do with it, according to Jo Natale, the corporation's director of media relations.

"But we think it's kind of neat," she said.

Devotion to Wegmans stores takes on an almost cult-like status.

Take for example the phenomenon of customers lining up for hours before a new store opens.

At first, lines consisted of just a few eager customers when a new store opened, then a couple hundred and then a couple of thousand people flocking to the doors hours before they officially open.

A recent store opening in Massachusetts — the first Wegmans in that state, according to Natale — saw people spending the night in their cars in the parking lot.

To be named a Foursquare mayor, a lot of fine print has to be adhered to. Employees of listed businesses, for example, are not eligible.

Check-ins have to be legitimate visits to the venue and care is taken to eliminate spammers and those who attempt to do repeated check-ins, according to the Foursquare site.

When a subscriber is declared the mayor of a particular venue, the honor is noted with a yellow crown icon placed by that person's name. The mayor's picture is also posted on the business listing, according to Foursquare.

Business owners have the option of providing perks, including a reserved parking space for the mayor, and discounts, if they choose.

The race for mayor of Columbia's Wegmans starts June 17, when the store is scheduled to open.

The first winner should get the crown mid-August.