Fairlawn, OH. Residents Mull Over Wal-Mart
Residents discuss possible Wal-Mart [Akron Beacon Journal (Ohio)]
There wasn’t much new information offered to Montrose-area residents gathered at a meeting Thursday night to discuss a possible Wal-Mart superstore on vacant land on Rothrock Road.
Fairlawn Mayor Bill Roth listened to about 80 residents gathered at the Rosemont Country Club concerned about the possible development of the property and the additional traffic it might attract.
Roth did say the residents in Rosemont Ridge, Enclave, Rothrock Place and Copley Place developments might want to consider converting some of their streets into cul-de-sacs.
‘’The real issue is, do you really want it that way,’’ he said. ‘’There are advantages and disadvantages. It will be your call.’’
The mayor said he spoke Thursday afternoon with developer Larry Levy, who is interested in building on about 60 acres on Rothrock Road.
The residents are concerned that the commercial land, which is located in Copley Township, could become home to a new Wal-Mart supercenter to replace a smaller Wal-Mart near the intersection of Cleveland-Massillon Road and West Market Street.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Friday, April 25 | 8 comments | Permalink
Miami, OH. Wal-Mart Going Up Despite Environmental Concerns
Wal-Mart Going Up Despite Concerns [RedOrbit]
Heavy equipment is rolling for a new Wal-Mart Supercenter near the Dayton Mall and Interstate 675, a project delayed for a year by a residents’ challenge to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency that was under review by a state environmental board.
The residents, who hired a Cincinnati attorney to fight the project before the state’s Environmental Review Appeals Commission, simply ran out of money, said the attorney, Tim Mara.
The residents argued that because of flooding concerns, the Ohio EPA should not have awarded the retail giant a special permit to fill in .9 acres of wetlands and impact three unnamed tributaries to Holes Creek. The company also was awarded approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The $8 million Supercenter on Kingsridge Drive has been scaled down a bit, with the dropping of a tire and lube center, according to plans filed with Miami Twp.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Wednesday, April 23 | 0 comments | Permalink
Colorado Lawmakers Take Aim at Wal-Mart’s Tax Strategies
Wal-Mart has avoided paying thousands of dollars in state taxes over the years by paying rent to itself in a process known as “captive REITs.” After the Wall Street Journal exposed the practice last year, several states have revised their tax code to prevent large corporations from exploiting the hole. Colorado is now the latest state to move to close the controversial loophole, with legislation pending that would force corporations to pay their full share of taxes. “Captive REITs” and Wal-Mart’s other tax avoidance strategies are discussed in the latest issue of Wal-Mart Watch In Depth: “The Great Tax Dodge. Click the image at right to download the full document.
Bill targets Wal-Mart ‘tax evasion scheme’ [Rocky Mountain News]
Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, introduced a tax bill designed to stop Wal-Mart and other companies from deducting real-estate expenses they’re paying to themselves.
Levy calls the technique an illegal tax evasion scheme.
The tactic, revealed by The Wall Street Journal in February 2007, involves Wal-Mart giving its stores and land to a real estate investment trust, which it then pays rent to. REITs pay no corporate taxes if they pay out most of their income to shareholders.
Another Wal-Mart subsidiary owns the REIT and gets the income. The rent is then deducted on state income taxes as a business expense.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Wednesday, April 23 | 7 comments | Permalink
Kansas City, MO. Disabled Man Settles Eight Year Discrimination Case Against Wal-Mart
On January 25, 2004---more than 4 years ago---Sprawl-Busters reported that a disabled man had filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart through the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunities Commission. The lawsuit accused the giant retailer of refusing to hire a job applicant who happened to have cerebral palsy. The EEOC claimed that Wal-Mart violated the 1991 Americans With Disabilities Act, when it refused to hire Steve Bradley, Jr., who applied for any job at the Wal-Mart in Richmond, Missouri, which is 40 miles from Kansas City. Bradley, who has CP, must use crutches and a wheelchair to get around.
The EEOC filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Kansas City. The federal agency represents individuals who allege they have been discriminated against. At the time, the EEOC petitioned the court to require Wal-Mart to pay Bradley lost wages and benefits, compensatory and punitive damages and give him a job. In August of 2005, a U.S. District Judge in Kansas City granted Wal-Mart’s motion for summary judgment and dismissed the suit, saying the EEOC has provided insufficient evidence to make their case. The judge ruled that Bradley’s mobility limitations made him unsuitable for the positions of greeter and cashier.
But Bradley did not give us his effort. On February 17, 2007---three years after initiating his suit, Bradley won the support of a federal appeals court, which reinstated a lawsuit alleging that Wal-Mart violated the 1991 Americans with Disabilities Act when it refused to hire him. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that significant facts remained in dispute, and voided the lower court’s summary judgment. “We’re obviously delighted with the decision,” said a regional attorney for the EEOC. “We presented substantial evidence that Mr. Bradley was totally qualified to be either a greeter or a cashier, and it’s really up to the jury to decide that question, not the court, as was done here.”
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Posted by Al Norman on Tuesday, April 22 | 0 comments | Permalink
Wal-Mart Watch In Depth: The Great Tax Dodge
As Americans around the country file their taxes this week, Wal-Mart continues to use a number of loopholes, legal strategies and untruths to avoid paying its fair share of taxes. Learn more about all the company’s tax avoidance strategies in Wal-Mart Watch In Depth, issue 5 - “The Great Tax Dodge.” From the introduction:
When Wal-Mart wants to build a store in a new community, it makes a lot of promises. The company paints an alluring picture of a bustling local economy with more jobs, increased tax revenue and a thriving shopping district all centered around the town’s sparkling new Wal-Mart store. As American communities struggle to cope with budget shortfalls and a slowing economy, it is not surprising that many bend over backwards to bring Wal-Mart to town.
Unfortunately, communities often experience a much different reality. Studies have shown the retailer routinely drives down area wages and eliminates retail jobs. As local businesses close their
doors, towns become more dependent on Wal-Mart for tax revenue. However, the company has developed elaborate mechanisms for avoiding its taxes, leaving our cities and towns high and dry.Throughout this issue of In Depth, we examine the myriad ways that Wal-Mart avoids paying taxes or uses public dollars for its private endeavors. Many of these practices, while technically legal, effectively abdicate the responsibilities Wal-Mart agreed to when it negotiated to enter a community. This is unfair to the working men and women who shop at Wal-Mart and pay their taxes every day.
Click here to download the document (PDF).
Posted by Media Team on Tuesday, April 15 | 8 comments | Permalink
Dearborn, MI. Residents Unite to Protect Community
New Wal-Mart spurs opposition [The Arab American News]
It’s a concern that enters the minds of citizens every time a new Wal-Mart comes to town: What’s going to happen to the small businesses in the area?
With the recent opening of the Wal-Mart in Dearborn, one local group is hosting a meeting for concerned citizens, government officials and business owners. The group, called Wake Up Wal-Mart Downriver, fears that more Wal-Marts will go up in the future in the Downriver area and also wants to make sure that citizens of Dearborn have a chance to let their voices be heard.
The meeting will be held on Monday, April 14th at the Henry Ford Center for the Performing Arts from 1:00-9:00 p.m. The day will begin with a roundtable for community leaders including local government officials from 1:30-2:45 p.m. Cities expected to be represented include Allen Park, Lincoln Park, Melvindale and Dearborn.
From 3:00-3:30 p.m., a press conference will feature speakers from sponsors including the Interfaith Committee for Worker Issues; United Food and Commercial Workers Local 876; Metro Detroit AFL-CIO; and Apollo Printing and Graphics.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Monday, April 14 | 0 comments | Permalink
Frenchtown, MI. Wal-Mart Delays Another Superstore Project For A Year
Frenchtown, Michigan becomes the 49th community to see its proposed Wal-Mart supercenter either cancelled or delayed since last June. Wal-Mart has four stores for sale or lease in Michigan, not counting the one in Frenchtown township. The discount store in Frenchtown will only be open until the Wal-Mart supercenter gets built there---if that ever happens. Because, for now, the project is on ice.
Frenchtown has a population of around 22,000, and is a largely agricultural community in eastern Monroe County on the shores of Lake Erie. According to the Monroe News, Wal-Mart is delaying this superstore project---but not killing it outright. Instead of starting construction on the store in 2008, the company has pushed it back until 2009, which means it will not open until 2010. Opponents of the project know that today’s delay can turn into tomorrow’s cancellation.
Last June, Wal-Mart announced that it was delaying 80 stores for at least one year, due to a change in its growth strategy. In Frenchtown, city officials blamed the delay on site-specific issues---but ultimately noted that “general economic conditions” were to blame. Frenchtown Township Supervisor James McDevitt said the construction timetable was delayed due to the need to remove a rail spur on the site, and relocation of a water main. “They had some mitigation of the some property they had to do for wetlands and they also had a railroad spur coming in that has to be removed. They’re still working it out with the railroad company when that work can be done.” But then he added: “Also, with the way the economy is, they just felt it was a good time to hold off and wait till next year,” he added.
Yet Wal-Mart says it is doing very well during the recession----and will do even better if Americans start spending their federal tax rebate checks at Wal-Mart. In the meantime, a vacant lumber retailer is being torn down on the supercenter site, as well as a trucking business. “We are making sure the buildings they purchased on the property will be removed,” McDevitt told the newspaper. “They’re getting to be an eyesore and people have been stealing windows, siding, and everything else off of them.” It appears that the city’s taxpayers are paying for this site work, not Wal-Mart.
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Posted by Al Norman on Monday, April 14 | 0 comments | Permalink
Mentor, OH. City Officials Make Secret Deal with Wal-Mart in Las Vegas.
What were elected officials from Mentor, Ohio doing with Wal-Mart in Las Vegas? And why did the city end up promoting a dead Wal-Mart store? These are some of the questions that residents in Mentor should be asking, now that details of Wal-Mart’s back room deal have been revealed.
There are 8 Wal-Mart stores within 20 miles of Mentor, Ohio. The city itself already has a Wal-Mart discount store on Mentor Avenue. But there’s also a Wal-Mart supercenter in Chardon, Ohio only 8 miles away, plus three other supercenters within a short drive. There are approximately 52,000 people living in Mentor. The city boasts of its “incomparable lifestyle” and says “bargain hunters will love shopping in the sixth largest retail center in the state of Ohio!” The city estimates that it has “nearly 600 retail businesses, and a “low 6.25% sales tax” that makes Mentor a “popular destination for shoppers.”
Since 1961, the city has been home to the Great Lakes Mall, which, when first built, was the largest indoor shopping mall in the country. It holds 1.5 million square feet of retail space over 125 acres of land. Even with all this retail space, city officials in Mentor want more. Last week, city officials announced that they are trading up on Wal-Marts. The existing Wal-Mart discount store will be closed, and a new supercenter will open at a mall called The Shoppes of Diamond Center. “It was confirmed by United Commercial Property Group,” city Councilman Ray Kirchner told the News-Herald. “Construction should start sometime next year.”
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Posted by Al Norman on Monday, April 14 | 0 comments | Permalink
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