Who Plans These Things?

I'm not against Starbucks.
I don't actively seek out their coffee 'cause I like to support the 'little guys', but as a corporation they are pretty good to their employees and pretty sound in their business practices.

So when they announced that they were going to close a few stores, I didn't think anything of it.
Afterall, they are practically EVERYWHERE and with the economy getting the way it is, closing a few stores would only increase the traffic to the remaining open stores.

So I read today that people in Capital Hill are petitioning to keep their neighborhood Starbucks open.
That's all well and good. I don't begrudge them, but WHO thought closing that location was a good idea in the first place?

In my hometown we have TWO Starbucks for a town of just over 8000 people (not including the various little independents scattered about).
In Woodinville we have 4 Starbuck locations.... 3 of them within a block of each other.
NONE of these are on the 'scheduled to be closed list', and yet the one in Capital Hill is?

Is this just a way for the company to get free market research by the public?

Closing the Capital Hill location won't affect me one bit.
Heck! Closing one of the locations closer to me won't affect me either.
But who at company was thinking "Hmmm... let's close the one location in a popular neighbohood but leave the multiple locations within a few yards of each other open in other areas?"

I just don't get it.