VERMONT SITE FIGHT: PERMIT DEADLINE
Wal-Mart faces permit deadline [Bennington (Vt.) Banner]
BENNINGTON — The Vermont Environmental Court set a firmer deadline Monday for an out-of-state developer to double the size of the current Wal-Mart.
Jonathan Levy of Ohio won town permits in January 2006 to increase the size of the Wal-Mart in the Monument Plaza on Northside Drive to 112,000 square feet.After a year without any action, however, the Environmental Court said in March that Levy should file his Act 250 permit with the District 8 Environmental Commission by May 21. That date was not met.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Beth Gostanian on Wednesday, June 27 | 0 comments | Permalink
MASSACHUSETTS SITE FIGHT: HEARING COMMENCES
Wal-Mart hearing opens [Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette Lancaster]Wal-Mart hearing opens [Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette Lancaster]
LANCASTER— The Lancaster Conservation Commission opened its first public hearing on the proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter on Old Union Turnpike last night, but did not take any testimony from the applicant’s engineers.
Commission member Thomas G. Kennedy will be chairing the public hearings on Wal-Mart and asked commission members to vote on several meeting protocols.
“Because of the size of this project, I think we need to be diligent in structuring these public hearings,” Mr. Kennedy said. “First, I think we should hire a consulting engineer to review all of the materials and the project itself.”
The commission approved the request, and the town will be putting out a request for proposals to hire an engineering firm to review notice-of-intent issues, public input and help write the final order of conditions decision.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Beth Gostanian on Wednesday, June 27 | 0 comments | Permalink
NEW YORK SITE FIGHT: WAL-MART FOES LOSE IN HAMBURG
Wal-Mart foes lose in Hamburg [Buffalo (N.Y.) News]
One of the major hurdles preventing Wal-Mart from moving down Southwestern Boulevard in Hamburg has been removed with the dismissal of a lawsuit accusing the town of mishandling the project.
Hamburg First, a small organization represented by frequent Wal-Mart opponent David Seeger, had filed a suit in State Supreme Court alleging the town failed to follow proper environmental review procedures.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Beth Gostanian on Wednesday, June 27 | 0 comments | Permalink
VERMONT SITE FIGHT: E-COURT SQUEEZES WAL-MART TO FILE PLAN
E-court squeezes Wal-Mart to file plan [Rutland (Vt.) Herald]
BENNINGTON — The Vermont Environmental Court nudged a developer planning to build a new Wal-Mart into moving forward during a status conference on the project on Monday in Barre.
The court accepted the applicant’s request that he be allowed to file for an Act 250 permit from the District 8 Environmental Commission by Oct. 1, according to Rutland lawyer Alan B. George, but also warned it may move forward with other hearings on the matter if the filing is delayed.
Ohio developer Jonathon Levy was granted permits in January 2006 to replace the town’s current Wal-Mart with a new 112,000-square-foot store at the same location as the present store on Northside Drive. Levy owns the shopping center that also houses a Price Chopper Supermarket and a Wendy’s restaurant.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Beth Gostanian on Tuesday, June 26 | 0 comments | Permalink
Monsey, NY. Religious Community Concerned About Proposed Wal-Mart
Hasidic residents continue to protest planned Wal-Mart Eyewitness News [WABC-TV (New York, NY)]
A planned 215,000-square-foot Wal-mart in Monsey continues to draw community ire more than two years after it was unveiled.
The community of 28,000, mostly Hasidic Jews, say the store will disrupt their lives. They say they are fearful for the safety of families walking to synagogue. They wonder if frowned-upon items like bikinis and lingerie will be on display for all to see. They worry the outsiders who shop there will transform the atmosphere of the quiet, sheltered community.
“The reason a lot of us came to live in Monsey is because we wanted to raise our families in a safe place, away from the influences of the outside world,” resident Yossi Weinberger told the New York Times. “I’m not sure it will be easy to do it if we have such a gigantic piece of the outside world move to our town.”
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Tuesday, June 26 | 0 comments | Permalink
NEW YORK SITE FIGHT: VILLAGE IN TROUBLE
Bath village warned of Wal-Mart impact [The Steuben (N.Y.) Courier]
BATH - A village resident whose local family business has been operating for four generations warned the Bath village board Monday a Wal- Mart superstore on state Route 54 outside village limits would have a detrimental impact on the village economy.
Scott Ward of M.J. Ward and Son advised board members to partner with the Bath town board in hiring an independent consulting firm that would assess the local economic impact of a Wal-Mart superstore.
The study, Ward added, should also address the traffic and safety impact of a 150,000- square-foot Wal-Mart, which the corporation announced it wants to build on Route 54 in the vicinity of the current Owl Homes.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Beth Gostanian on Monday, June 25 | 0 comments | Permalink
Religious Community Worries About Wal-Mart’s Influence
Fearing Wal-Mart Will Bring Too Much of the Outside In [New York Times]
It seems whenever Wal-Mart proposes a new store, controversy sprouts. Across the country, environmentalists, unions, civic associations and churches have objected to the retailer’s plans to drop anchor in their communities, citing concerns about traffic and crime, merchandise and employment policies and the overall quality of life.
But the protest of a planned 215,000-square-foot store here has a decidedly religious overtone.
When residents talk about traffic, they are fearful for the safety of families walking to synagogue on Saturdays. When they fret about merchandise, they wonder if frowned-upon items like bikinis and lingerie will be on display for everyone to see. And when they imagine the outsiders who would shop at the store, they worry that their presence could transform the town’s pious, sheltered atmosphere.
“The reason a lot of us came to live in Monsey is because we wanted to raise our families in a safe place, away from the influences of the outside world,” said Yossi Weinberger, 30, a father of four who works at a local travel agency. “I’m not sure it will be easy to do it if we have such a gigantic piece of the outside world move to our town.”
Philip H. Serghini, a public affairs manager for Wal-Mart, has visited the community of 28,000, most of them Hasidic Jews, at least six times since October. He has met in private with about two dozen rabbis to explain the company’s proposal to turn a shuttered drive-in theater on Route 59 into a retail magnet for miles around.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Monday, June 25 | 7 comments | Permalink
PENNSYLVANIA SITE FIGHT: WAL-MART ON HOLD
Wal-Mart on hold in N. Huntingdon awaiting state OK [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
Issues and concerns have stopped site preparation for the proposed Mills Pointe shopping plaza, which will include a 200,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Superstore, and an adjacent Huntingdon Marketplace retail center.
Work was suspended more than two months ago when Sewickley-based Sipple Development Inc. owner Doug Sipple moved his grading equipment from the site.
Mr. Sipple would not comment. He referred inquiries to DeBartolo Development offices in Tampa, Fla.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Beth Gostanian on Friday, June 22 | 0 comments | Permalink
View Wal-Mart Watch's videos on YouTube