North Carolina Cherokees Debate Wal-Mart on Reservation

Cherokee contemplates Wal-Mart’s impact [Smoky Mountain News]

Some residents on the Cherokee Indian Reservation are calling for a referendum vote on whether Wal-Mart Stores should be allowed to build there.

The push for public participation comes as tribal leaders continue a series of negotiations with the retail giant, which currently has one super center in neighboring Sylva and is building another in Waynesville. If tribal leaders and Wal-Mart can iron out details, the Wal- Mart would most likely build on a tribally owned tract of land near the Cherokee Indian Hospital.

Tens of thousands of additional dollars are at stake for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians: Wal-Mart, like other commercial outlets on the reservation, would be subject to a 7-percent tribal sales tax on all goods sold.

The additional revenue doesn’t settle the issue for all of the tribe’s 13,500 members, however. Some say money is simply not enough reason to risk damaging the reservation’s small-town feel, and, possibly, putting some small business owners out of business.

Principal Chief Michell Hicks said that tribal leaders anticipate releasing a statement about Wal-Mart “within weeks.”

“The new Wal-Mart would be a significant contributor to our tribal levy and a major employer for the region,” he said.

Read the rest of this story ...

Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Wednesday, May 16 | 0 comments | Permalink

Blacksburg, VA. Wal-Mart Stirs Another Controversy at Virginia Tech

In the heart of the south, where no unions tread, the battle against Wal-Mart continues to rage, underneath the radar of the major media, which has been preoccupied with another local story-—the shootings at Virginia Tech. Yet the story of Blacksburg, Virginia, “the proud home of Virginia Tech,” located in the southwest part of the state, is typical of the battles that Sprawl-Busters has narrated for years in states like Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, and elsewhere. For years, local citizens groups have taken up arms against the Arkansas corporation that has ripped up Dixie from one end to the other. Ironically, the General Sherman in this scorched-earth battle was a fellow southerner—Sam Walton.
In Blacksburg, residents are fighting the so-called Gables Shopping Center, a South Main development, which includes a 187,000 s.f. retail footprint. The town council last year approved a rezoning that paved the way for a 40-acre project along South Main Street. Wal-Mart denies it is their store-—but the size is a dead giveaway. At last week’s town council hearing, resident after resident stood to speak against the over-scaled plan. According to the Roanoke Times, residents have formed a group called Blacksburg United for Responsible Growth (BURG), and begun an emailing campaign and petition drive. The group is fighting the world’s largest retailer with a bake sale. Residents have also drafted a proposed zoning ordinance that would require big box retailers to seek town council approval before receiving a building permit. Blacksburg Councilman Don Langrehr proposed ordinance 1450, which would limit the size of retail buildings in town to 80,000 s.f. Larger buildings would require a special use permit issued by the town council. In April, the council voted to fast-track consideration of the ordinance and plans to vote on it May 29.

Read the rest of this story ...

Posted by Al Norman on Monday, May 14 | 0 comments | Permalink

Crofton, MD. Developer Pulls the Plug on Wal-Mart Supercenter

Community pressure has squeezed Wal-Mart out of another community. On April 18, 2006, Sprawl-Busters reported that Anne Arundel County, Maryland, had five Wal-Marts, but the mega-retailer proposed to build a 143,000 s.f. store roughly 6 miles from an existing store. That thought stimulated a citizen’s group, Crofton First, to try to block the latest big box assault. Wal-Mart applied to build a store on 20 acres of land. A spokesman for Wal-Mart told The Capital newspaper that the proposed store was “on the small side,” even though its nearly the size of 3 football fields under one roof. There are already two Wal-Mart stores in nearby Glen Burnie, one in Hanoverand one in Russett, plus a Sam’s Club in Parole. Wal-Mart told the newspaper that the latest store would not take sales from the Wal-Mart in Bowie, Maryland, just 6 miles to the south. “We are a retailer,” the Wal-Mart spokesperson said. “We are in the business of profit. One (store) has nothing to do with the other. It’s different communities and different needs.” Today, Sprawl-Busters received word from Crofton First that the shadow of a Wal-Mart over their community has been lifted. “We have some exciting news,” the group wrote. “Crofton First Co-Chairman, Madonna Brennan, received a phone call this afternoon from County Councilman Benoit stating that Berkshire (land owner) is ending his sale agreement with Wal-Mart and will look for a more suitable buyer.

Read the rest of this story ...

Posted by Al Norman on Friday, May 04 | 0 comments | Permalink

Roanoke, VA. Judge Sides With Wal-Mart In Citizen’s Appeal

On March 13, 2007, Sprawl-Busters reported that residents in Roanoke, Virginia had filed a lawsuit to stop a Wal-Mart supercenter from being built. The group “Citizens for Smart Growth Roanoke” charged that Roanoke County failed to follow their own procedures in approving the Wal-Mart at the end of October, 2006. The County Board of Supervisors rezoned land for the Wal-Mart, and then gave the project a special permit for a 41 acre piece of land. The location of the proposed superstore is just south of an existing Wal-Mart along Route 220, which will surely close if this superstore is approved. The land is located in an overlay zoning district that places restrictions on building design, landscaping, signs, and lighting. It also requires that any building larger than 50,000 s.f.
obtain a special permit. Holrob, the Tennessee developer, submitted a Wal-Mart supercenter four times greater, at over 200,000 s.f. Residents charged that the special use permit granted therefore violated the intent of the overlay district, which was to limit the size and scenic impact of retail buildings. This week, residents wrote Sprawl-Busters with the following update: “The circuit court ruled to dismiss our lawsuit. ALL the traffic now will use the one entrance/exit. Wal-Mart just assumed they could get a 2nd entrance at the upscale Landrover dealership, but they were told “NO.” We, of course, were all told 60% of the traffic would never reach the nearby school. What a joke!” According to the Roanoke Times, Judge Robert Doherty ruled that the county’s decision to allow the construction met the legal standard of being “fairly debatable,” that even if “objective and reasonable persons” had differing opinions about it, the board of supervisors’ decision was reasonable and legal.

Read the rest of this story ...

Posted by Al Norman on Monday, April 30 | 0 comments | Permalink

Edison, NJ. Mayor Loses Courageous Legal Battle With Wal-Mart

Jun Choi, the current Mayor of Edison, New Jersey, does not want a Wal-Mart supercenter in his township. But the agreements approved by township officials before he took office have tied his hands. Choi charged that the township violated its legal obligation when it granted Wal-Mart a building permit. But the developer sued the Mayor, saying that he unlawfully interfered with the process and should be held personally responsible for the developer’s monetary losses. When the developer’s lawsuit was filed, Choi called it “intimidation and scare tactics,” and reiterated his charge that the township Planning Board failed to comply with proper procedure in executing the developer’s agreement. “The legal basis for us not issuing the building permit is they did not properly execute the developer’s agreement back in 2005,” the Mayor told the Home News Tribune. He said the Planning Board needed approval from the Township Council to execute the document-—which it never received. According to the township’s municipal codebook, a developer’s agreement must be executed and delivered to the Township Council before on-site construction may begin. The township and the developer, Edison Route 27, entered into a developer’s agreement in December 2005. The Planning Board had granted site-plan approval a year earlier, in December 2004 for a 140,000 s.f. Wal-Mart. When he ran for office in 2005, Choi said that he opposed the Wal-Mart, blaming the incumbent Mayor at the time, George Spadoro, and the Planning Board for surreptitiously pushing the application through. “This was snuck through in the middle of the night,” Choi said during a debate in the summer of 2005. “George Spadoro’s appointments to the Planning Board did not do their jobs properly.” But thd developer said that Choi was attempting “to frustrate and thwart the project” and engaging in a “wrongful misuse of his powers.” The developer calculated that the delays were costing them $2,970 per day, or just over a million dollars a year.
The developer in its lawsuit asked the court to hold the Mayor personally responsible for those costs, and sought damages and attorney fees from Choi. This week, Judge James P. Hurley of the Superior Court of New Jersey in Middlesex County ruled against the Mayor, and ordered the city to give Wal-Mart a building permit within 20 days. “The township will comply with the judge’s order,” Mayor Jun Choi told the newspaper. “But we continue to oppose this project.” Edison Route 27 Associates has already paid the township $1 million for traffic improvements, and paid $96,000 to the township’s tree-replacement fund, a fund that generates money from developers that don’t replace trees on their sites.

Read the rest of this story ...

Posted by Al Norman on Monday, April 30 | 0 comments | Permalink

Low Taxes Always – For Wal-Mart - Too Bad for the States

The Wall Street Journal reported today that the Rhode Island legislature has introduced a bill to shut down a popular corporate income tax shelter used by Wal-Mart. It is estimated that the tax shelter costs Rhode Island $7 million in revenue. That is money that Rhode Island’s taxpayers have to make up.

John Simley, Wal-Mart spokesperson, said the legislation would add costs to the companies that use them. Put another way, Mr. Simley is saying that if Rhode Island forces Wal-Mart to pay legal taxes the company has already agreed to as a cost of doing business within the state, it will cost the company money.

Wal-Mart should hope that shoppers don’t use the same logic when they are in the stores or they might consider that actually paying for the items rather than stealing them will increase their personal costs.

Posted by David Nassar, Executive Director on Friday, April 27 | 11 comments | Permalink

Knightdale, NC. Judge Rules Against Local Homeowners In Wal-Mart Case

On April 13th, a Superior Court judge in Wake County, North Carolina set back efforts of local residents in Knightdale to block a Wal-Mart superstore from being built far too close for comfort. According to The News & Observer, Judge Henry Barnette Jr. ruled that Knightdale officials did not act improperly last year when they approved the Wal-Mart. The Citizens Against Residential Encroachment (CARE), filed their lawsuit last August, charging that Knightdale officials failed to notify neighbors of public hearings, and gave the developer variances to the town’s ordinances. The residents also charged that one councilor who voted for the project had a conflict of interest. The Judge said none of the plaintiffs were denied the opportunity to be present at any hearing, and the councilman had no substantial financial interest in the project.

Read the rest of this story ...

Posted by Al Norman on Tuesday, April 17 | 0 comments | Permalink

Charleston, WV. Another Lawsuit Filed in Wal-Mart “Time Shaving” Case

The West Virginia Record newspaper reported this week that another lawsuit has been filed against Wal-Mart, charging the company with stealing from its own workers by not fully crediting them for their hours worked. This practice is known as “time-shaving.” Sprawl-Busters reported on December 20, 2005 that Massachusetts Attorney Robert Bonsignore had charged Wal-Mart with time-shaving, and said the retailer was facing a serious class action lawsuit because of its prevalent “time shaving” violations against its workers. Bonsignore said that Wal-Mart had stolen hundreds of millions of dollars from its workers across the country. “Time shaving” is a form of theft in which the company fails to properly credit its employees for all the time they worked. According to Atty. Bonsignore, “Our case is going well. We have filed in a number of states and have had interest expressed in several more. We have proof that Wal-Mart secretly manipulated the time records of their hourly rate employees, robbing them of about $1,000,000 per year per store. We can prove they did this through objective electronic evidence from 1997 on.” On April 3, 2007, Charleston, West Virginia lawyer Troy Giatras filed suit in U. S. District Court claiming that Wal-Mart shaved minutes from payroll records. In the suit, three former employees at the South Charleston store seek to represent every employee Wal-Mart has stolen time from in West Virginia since 1989.