CALIFORNIA SITE FIGHT: ATASCADERO POLL RAISES RED FLAGS

Topics: | | Community Impact | Economic/Small Business | Lawsuits | legislation | | | | | |

Wal-Mart poll triggers complaint [San Luis Obispo Tribune (Calif.)]

Anti-Wal-Mart activist Tom Comar and the Yes on Measure D-08 Committee have filed a complaint with the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission over the Atascadero Chamber of Commerce’s recent survey of business owners asking whether they want a Wal-Mart Supercenter in town.

The complaint alleges that the chamber violated its nonprofit status by paying for the survey and by advocating for residents to vote against Measure D-08,the so-called Atascadero Shield Initiative, which will be on the ballot in November.

The measure would prohibit commercial buildings in excess of 150,000 square feet, now allowed under the city’s General Plan, and bar any store in excess of 90,000 square feet from having more than 5 percent of its gross floor area dedicated to nontaxable goods such as groceries.

Also see: Doubts cast on makeup of businesses in survey [San Luis Obispo Tribune (Calif.)] after the jump.

Commission officials said they received the complaint Monday.

Commission spokesman Roman Porter said Comar would be notified within 14 business days of how, or if, the commission plans to proceed.

Possibilities include no action by the commission, a further investigation into the complaint or an issued warning or advisory letter to the chamber.

Potential fines, following a public hearing by the five-member commission, could reach $5,000 if it is determined that a violation occurred, Porter said.

The IRS deems that all organizations such as chambers of commerce that are designated a 501(c)(6) nonprofit may engage in an unlimited amount of lobbying, provided that the lobbying is related to the organization’s exempt purpose.

But Comar alleges that the chamber’s annual contract with the city of Atascadero for promotion services is helping finance its political activity.

The chamber’s 2008 operating budget of $375,000 includes $57,444 from the city for services such as tourism promotion and the annual visitor guide.

Joanne Main, the chamber’s executive director, counters that the chamber earmarks 2 percent of its revenue from its annual membership dues for lobbying purposes.

“We can use some of the funds from membership dues for lobbying for business,” Main said, “and that is exactly what we are doing.”

Main said about 36 percent of the budget comes from membership dues and that city money is not used for lobbying efforts.

If abiding by the 2 percent earmark for lobbying efforts, the chamber would be able to spend an estimated $2,286 on lobbying this year.

The survey cost $1,500 and other costs such as compensation for articles written for the organization’s newsletter have been minimal, Main said.

Still, Comar said that even if the chamber is not spending taxpayers’ money to directly finance its lobbying efforts, the city’s contribution to its budget each year allows the nonprofit chamber to remain politically active.

“If they didn’t have that money from the city, they would not have the money to spend on something like this,” he said.

Comar said he plans to ask the City Council on Tuesday to do a public audit of all city funds given to the chamber.

Reach AnnMarie Cornejo at 781-7939.

Doubts cast on makeup of businesses in survey [San Luis Obispo Tribune (Calif.)]

A Tribune analysis of results from the Atascadero Chamber of Commerce’s survey of member businesses shows that the number of respondents who approve of a Wal- Mart Supercenter is lower than chamber officials originally reported.

However, chamber Executive Director Joanne Main emphatically maintained this week that the survey shows more than half of the hundreds of Atascadero merchants polled support the controversial store.

Main has repeatedly said poll results—unveiled last week — show the surveyed business community is “in favor of a Super-Wal-Mart at a more than 2-to-1 margin,” citing that 51 percent of polled businesses expressed support of a Wal- Mart Supercenter in Atascadero, compared to the 23 percent against it.

The Tribune examined the poll results and found that the businesses asked specifically about Wal-Mart represent only 21 percent of the city’s total business community, not the 35 percent that chamber stated.

That means the number of businesses who said in the survey they support a Wal-Mart coming to town is about 11 percent of the city’s total businesses.

Main said last week that the contracted polling company, Los Angeles-based Cardinal Communications, queried 762 businesses from a list of 2,186 businesses in town.

However, only 458 businesses were asked whether they supported a Wal-Mart opening in Atascadero.

Main acknowledged the error and said it was unintentional. She said she remained confident in the chamber’s position against Measure D-08 and will continue to lobby against it.

“It was a sizeable return for any survey to receive,” Main said. “What we need to do now is concentrate on the undecided business owners and educate them on the measure.

“The sur vey has already proven the businesses want a Super-Wal-Mart to come to town and help the local economy,” she said. “We did our homework, and we are moving forward.”

Of the 458 businesses that responded, 233 said they supported a Wal-Mart, and 107 said they did not.

The 233 businesses in favor is 51 percent of the 458 who answered the question, but only about 11 percent of the total 2,186 of the city’s businesses. The 107 opposed are 23 percent of the survey respondents and 5 percent of the total businesses.

The remaining 118 respondents broke down this way:

• 73 (16 percent), said they were undecided;

• 33 (7 percent) said they didn’t know; and

• 12 (3 percent) refused to answer the question.

That’s about 26 percent of the 458 respondents but 5 percent of the total businesses in the city.

Tom Comar of the Oppose Wal-Mart group in Atascadero said he believes that the chamber is spinning the poll results by not taking into account the number of businesses that declined to answer the question.

“Thus, the chamber’s assertion that businesses overwhelmingly favor a Wal-Mart Supercenter is not supported by the poll results,” Comar said in a statement. “Less than one of five businesses has expressed that support.”

The original number released by the chamber included 117 businesses that Cardinal Communications tried to contact but was unable to because of what it described as bad phone numbers.

Posted by Luke West on Friday, September 19, 2008