Galt, CA. Planning Commission Discusses Ordinance

Wal-Mart eyes Galt site [Sacramento Bee (Calif.)]

Wal--Mart Stores Inc. wants to build a 132,000-square-foot superstore, including a garden center and grocery department, in the city of Galt.

Community Development Director Curt Campion told The Bee that the application filed Sept. 6 is for a Wal-Mart project on the south side of Twin Cities Road, east of Fermoy Way. That’s a short drive west of Highway 99.

The city Planning Commission already has been discussing a proposed ordinance to govern the establishment of superstores. The topic will be addressed at its next meeting later this month, Campion said.

Andrew Meredith, Galt’s vice mayor, said Tuesday that he is glad the superstore ordinance is being pursued.

The ordinance would ban superstores over 140,000 square feet that devote more than 10 percent of their floor space to groceries.

For stores the size of the proposed Wal-Mart that have 10 percent grocery space, the ordinance would require several analyses of community impact.

These would include an evaluation of the store’s compatibility with the surrounding neighborhood and its potential economic impact on the community.

The ordinance also would require stores in this category—100,000 square feet to 139,999 square feet—to undergo crime and urban decay analyses.

“Certainly this Wal-Mart store needs to be studied,” Meredith told The Bee in a voice-mail message. “It needs to be investigated.

“If those reports come back positive or negative, that will be a big factor in the council’s decision.”

Meredith said, based on information from the city attorney, that the Wal-Mart application would be governed by a city superstore ordinance, even though an ordinance has yet to take effect.

“Our attorney said, ‘No, the superstore ordinance will still apply to their application’s specifications,’ “ Meredith said.

A spokesman for Wal-Mart could not be reached for comment.

Meanwhile, an environmental impact report will be needed for the Wal-Mart project before the superstore proposal reaches the Planning Commission for formal consideration. That report could take nine to 12 months to complete.

In July, the Elk Grove City Council imposed a partial ban on retail stores over 150,000 square feet.

That decision came two years after members of the grass-roots Elk Grove Coalition Advocating Proper Planning turned back a 247,724-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter proposed for a largely residential area in the city.

Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Thursday, September 20, 2007

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