Albuquerque. NM. Wal-Mart Loses Battle To Balloonists
Wal-Mart got that deflated feeling this week, when the city council in Albuquerque, New Mexico shot down their plans for a superstore. The opponents that brought the big store down to earth were more than your usual mix of suspects. In Albuquerque, this may be the first Wal-Mart superstore ever defeated by balloonists. The retailer’s plans for a storen lost out to the city’s desire to acquire the land for a balloon landing site. “We’re not anti-Wal-Mart,” a group activists and balloonists told the Albuquerque Tribune. “We’re anti-colossal, regional big-box-type development that will essentially devastate this area.” A neighborhood group, the Alameda North Valley Association, opposed the 22-acre superstore site on Vista del Norte Drive Northeast. They warned against increased traffic, which would make it difficult and dangerous for neighborhood residents to get to and from their homes. The store would be open 24 hours and would sell alcohol. But they had allies among the balloonists. The Rainbow Ryders, Albuquerque’s largest balloon-ride company, said 70% of balloonists in the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta pass over the now-empty field on Osuna. Many choose it as a natural landing spot, he said. “We’ve got a world-class launch facility” at Balloon Fiesta Park, said a spokesman for the Rainbow Ryders. “But the city needs to start thinking seriously about where people are supposed to land. As development continues, it’s getting more and more difficult.” But it’s not just balloonists that turned the wind against Wal-Mart. It was money. Last year, the balloon fiesta brought the city an estimated $120 million. The head of the Vista del Norte Alliance told the Tribune that Wal-Mart “has taken this to the next level” by putting up petitions in all its area stores asking shoppers to support the supercenter. “Now it’s corporate America versus the little guy, and I don’t believe we’re going to put up with it,” he said. “We’re going to fight it tooth and nail.” And the balloonists/neighbors won. Last night, the Albuquerque city councilors rejected Wal-Mart’s plan. The council voted to buy the site and keep it for a landing space for the annual balloon fiesta. City Council President Debbie O’Malley said the city has earmarked $6.1 million to buy the land, but added that Wal-Mart may be reluctant to sell---so the city may have to resort to eminent domain and condemn the land. The vote to reject Wal-Mart’s store was unanimous.
The county has appraised the land at $3.6 million, but Wal-Mart says it is worth more than $10 million. If a settlement price can’t be reached and the city seeks condemnation of the property, a judge will end up setting the purchase price. But don’t feel sorry for Wal-Mart shoppers in Albuquerque. The city already has 9 Wal-Marts, of which 6 are supercenters. It makes more sense economically to protect a major tourist event, than to over-saturate the area with a tenth Wal-Mart. The city council was unanimously right on this one.
Posted by Al Norman on Friday, April 06 | 0 comments | Permalink
Westbrook, ME. Wal-Mart Officially Shuts Down Its Effort
On February 8, 2007, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart’s proposal in Westbrook, Maine appeared over, after a bitter, three year battle with local residents. It was announced in February in the Portland Press-Herald that Wal-Mart had decided not to renew its option on a 27 acres of land off the Westbrook Arterial. The word came, not from Wal-Mart, but from the real estate agency handling the deal. “It’s available to anybody at this point,” the real estate agent told the Press-Herald. Today, the media has confirmed that the land Wal-Mart wanted has been sold to a Portland real estate holding and development company, which will use the site for office, warehouse and manufacturing uses. The landowner said it had to accept substantially less for the property compared to what Wal-Mart was ready to pay. The land was lowered from $4.9 million to $3.5 million when Wal-Mart dropped out of the project. Thus ends a three year fiasco for Wal-Mart stockholders. In 2004, the Westbrook City Council voted to change the zoning of the mill from industrial to gateway commercial. The change cleared the way for a proposed 203,000 s.f. Wal-Mart Supercenter. But a group called Westbrook Our Home, opposed the project, and helped convince the town’s planning board to place restrictions on the site. Wal-Mart bristled over one restriction that would cap the size of retail projects in the gateway district at 160,000 s.f. But the planning board also added provisions for increased buffering for the surrounding neighborhood, and controls on lighting, hours of operation and delivery.
When a community says clearly what it wants, companies like Wal-Mart have a clear decision to make: they can stay and play by the rules, or they can pack their bags. In this case, the town said what it wanted, including measures to protect neighborhoods---and Wal-Mart found those protections unacceptable. They have gone from Westbrook, and local residents are glad to see them go. This is the second Wal-Mart defeat this week.
Posted by Al Norman on Friday, April 06 | 0 comments | Permalink
Wal-Mart Digs Up Trouble With Turtles
From St. Petersburg Times:
When a work crew tried to unearth some gopher tortoises on the site of a proposed Wal-Mart recently, it stirred up more than soil.
Instead, workers unleashed the ire of local activists who gathered Tuesday night on the steps of Tarpon Springs City Hall and waved banners and flaunted photos of a backhoe.
The group’s hand-painted signs said, “Bury Wal-Mart, not the turtles,” “Wal-Mart is an environmental predator” and “First the turtles, next 800 trees, then our heritage and way of life.”
“We’re asking the Board of Commissioners to find the will and compassion to intervene,” said Dory Larsen, a member of Friends of the Anclote River, which opposes the Wal-Mart project.
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Posted by Vasudha Desikan on Friday, April 06 | 1 comments | Permalink
Political Contributions in Chicago
The news today that Wal-Mart is dumping $100,000 into the Chicago elections comes as no surprise. Wal-Mart spent more than $100,000 in the first round of the elections and most of their candidates lost. It is no surprise they are trying to take another shot at it. Unfortunately, what Wal-Mart did not learn from the last round is that the voters of Chicago support the candidates who voted for the big-box living wage bill. Joe Moore, a Wal-Mart target, was the overwhelming favorite in the last round and Wal-Mart’s strong opposition to him this time should only make him more attractive to voters in the runoff.
Wal-Mart has no constituency in Chicago. They have no members. There is no one they can claim to speak for, but they airdrop money from Bentonville anyway. Maybe if they spent it on real change, the voters of Chicago would welcome them at their door.
From the Chicago Tribune:
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. contributed $100,000 Wednesday to a fund created by Mayor Richard Daley’s supporters for aldermanic allies in tightly fought campaigns.
Wal-Mart’s arrival in the city has been the hottest topic at City Hall in recent years, inspiring labor unions to spend heavily for candidates who would be less friendly to the retail giant’s interests. Before the six-figure donation, however, Wal-Mart had not been a major player in Chicago elections.
The $100,000 check went to a 2-month-old campaign fund known as the First C.D. Victory PAC, whose activities on behalf of pro-business, Daley-backed candidates was first reported in the Tribune last week.
The contribution makes Wal-Mart the largest donor to the committee, surpassing Commonwealth Edison Co.
Posted by David Nassar, Executive Director on Thursday, April 05 | 39 comments | Permalink
States and the Battle Over Emergency Contraception
Planned Parenthood announced today that it has been notified by Wal-Mart that the retail leader has revised its nationwide corporate policy regarding emergency contraception. The new policy ensures that customers will receive their prescriptions of over-the-counter products without discrimination, harassment or lecture. Emergency contraception such as the Plan B pill will now be stocked and dispensed without discrimination or delay.
This is a turnaround from previous Wal-Mart policy” – last year, Wal-mart agreed to begin stocking Plan B with the caveat that the company’s conscientious objection policy, which allowed pharmacists uncomfortable with dispensing certain prescriptions to refer customers to another pharmacist or pharmacy, would remain in effect. Plan B was approved for over-the-counter sale in mid-2006, meaning a prescription is no longer required for women 18 or older.
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Posted by Corey Himrod on Wednesday, April 04 | 19 comments | Permalink
Yakima, WA. Wal-Mart To Turn Fruit Bowl Into Sprawl-Bowl
Sprawl-Busters first wrote about Yakima, Washington four years ago, on February 21, 2003. At the time, citizens wrote: “Yakima is a city of about 85,000 people. We have one Wal Mart on the East side of town and now we are threatened with another one on the West side of town. The proposed Wal-Mart on the West side of town known as West Valley is supposed to be built right beside a large church, across from an elementary school that is a “walking school” (meaning that most of the children walk to school instead of being bussed) and right in the middle of a middle class, single family home neighborhood…We have been talking to the newspaper, city council, city development staff but all everyone can see is sales tax revenue. We are having a hard time convincing people that another Wal-Mart will kill this town.” Four battle-scarred years later, there is still no second Wal-Mart in Yakima, but the Yakima Herald Republic reports this week that a “development agreement” is heading for a vote on May 1st. The public will be given a chance to comment, and then the Yakima City Council could vote on the agreement. The agreement will spell out the conditions Wal-Mart has to meet to build their 204,000 s.f. superstore on 64th Avenue and Nob Hill. In 2006, the dispute over the store went to a hearing examiner, who ruled that Wal-Mart had to meet 52 conditions before it could build. But the Yakima City Council modified those provisions in August. Wal-Mart has bristled over five of the requirements, which involve lighting, street and sewer improvements. The city and Wal-Mart are trying to reach a settlement before a June 6 appeals hearing in Yakima County Superior Court. There is also a hearing on april 12th to review the company’s design changes to the supserstore. Some of the conditions Wal-Mart is being asked to comply with a minor, cosmetic changes, such as building a “smoking shelter,” dropping a gas station from the project, and eliminating the drive through for their pharmacy.
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Posted by Al Norman on Wednesday, April 04 | 0 comments | Permalink
Tarpon Springs, FL. Wal-Mart Removes Endangered Tortoises From Superstore Site
Endangered species in your way? Rent a backhoe. That’s what Wal-Mart did this week in Florida. A Wal-Mart backhoe began removing an endangered species from the proposed site of a superstore in Tarpon Springs, Florida---before they even have their building permits. The site has been a source of controversy for several years. The Concerned Citizens of Tarpon Springs took the city to court for approving the supercenter project on a 3-2 vote. In March of 2006 a three judge panel in the 6th.
Circuit Court for Pinellas County ruled against the Concerned Citizens of Tarpon Springs, and the group, running out of funds, had to end their legal challenge. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Committee gave Wal-Mart a permit in April, 2005. authorizing the retailer ‘to take gopher tortoises, their eggs and their burrows within its development boundaries where such taking is incidental to development activities.” Wal-Mart was required to contribute to the acquisition of 2.17 acres of tortoise habitat by paying $15,943 to the FWC Land Acquisitions Trust Fund. At the hearing Wal-Mart said they would relocate the gopher tortoises.
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Posted by Al Norman on Tuesday, April 03 | 0 comments | Permalink
Wal-Mart Attempts to Cater to the New Congress
From the Washington Post:
Wal-Mart, the Democrats’ New Friend
Wal-Mart has taken its lumps lately, especially from the Democratic Party over its treatment of employees. So the company has been courting the new majority on Capitol Hill by doing a lot of the standard stuff: hiring Democratic executives and donating more to the campaigns of Democratic candidates. Its political action committee has given 49 percent of its funds to Democrats this year, up from 32 percent in last year’s election.
But last week Wal-Mart’s outreach got personal as well—it’s now doing favors for the families of powerful Democratic senators.
Wal-Mart is looking to curry favor with Capitol Hill’s new majority by donating to Democratic campaigns, adding lobbyists with Democratic connections and engaging in some creative sponsorship opportunities.
Last Tuesday evening, the world’s largest retailer sponsored a fancy reception in the Capitol’s LBJ Room off the Senate floor to celebrate a yet-to-be-completed documentary about female members of the chamber called “14 Women.” The film’s three producers include Mary Lambert, the older sister of Sen. Blanche Lincol n (D-Ark.), and Nicole Boxer, the daughter of Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.). Paul Kane of washingtonpost.com reports that the “Wal-Mart” on the name tags was larger than the names of the guests.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Tuesday, April 03 | 7 comments | Permalink
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