UTAH SITE FIGHT: DISCUSSION CONTINUES IN SALT LAKE CITY

Topics: | | Community Impact | Economic/Small Business | Environment | Traffic/Sprawl | Utah | | | |

Wrong on Wal-Mart [Salt Lake Tribune (Utah)]

Wal-Mart has muscled its way into community after community, leaving the remains of locally owned businesses in its wake. So it comes as a shock to me that I actually support Wal-Mart’s proposal to build a new store on Parley’s Way. I’m at a loss as to why the Salt Lake City Planning Commission would rather see a remodel of the old structure rather than a new energy-efficient building ("Rezoning request on track for denial,” Tribune, Sept. 12). After all, the mega-retailer is coming. Traffic is coming. Why not improve the project? It’s not like the current building is an example of rare architecture deserving historical protected status, or that the present site is a beacon of modern city planning.
In a last-minute effort to use a Kmart gift card, I made a rare trip to the site, and thought: “This Kmart is the only place that can make Wal-Mart look classy.”

Bert Ankrom
Salt Lake City

Posted by Luke West on Thursday, September 18, 2008