Salt Lake City, UT. Official Says Many Residents Hate Wal-Mart
Sugar House is one of Salt Lake City, Utah’s oldest neighborhoods. The local media describes the area as being known for its “distinctive local stores and small-town charm.” But Sugar House is facing a big threat to that distinctive charm. Wal-Mart wants to build a new 122,320 s.f. supercenter in the heart of Sugar House. But the company faces a big obstacle: the empty Kmart building that Wal-Mart bought three years ago.
For Wal-Mart to build a new store, it must first tear down the empty Kmart, but the city’s zoning ordinance says the existing building can be remodeled—but not torn down. Wal-Mart has therefore asked for a rezoning of the property---but such a request is not an automatic right, and the city could easily turn down the request. Wal-Mart tried to sweeten the deal by offering a landscaping package and “green” features on the building, such as skylights. They offered to install new sidewalks and flatten the parking lot, which is currently sloped. “We plan to invest a significant amount of money and resources into the redevelopment of this site, eventually providing the community with a store that is appealing to the eye, technologically modern and environmentally progressive,” a Wal-Mart spokesman said. But the Salt Lake City Council has not yet decided on whether or not to allow the rezoning. They are likely to pay attention to the recommendation of an advisory group to the council known as the Sugar House Community Council.
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Posted by Al Norman on Tuesday, September 04 | 0 comments | Permalink
TEXAS SITE FIGHT: WAL-MART OPPONENTS HEADED TO COURT
Northcross Wal-Mart headed to Trial [News 8, Austin, Texas]
The controversy over a planned Wal-Mart Supercenter at Austin’s Northcross Mall continues. The mall’s owner, the city of Austin and two neighborhood groups will be fighting it out in court in November.
Responsible Growth For Northcross and the Allendale Neighborhood Association have combined their lawsuits against the city of Austin and Lincoln Property Company, the owners of Northcross Mall.
Part of the mall at Anderson Lane and Burnet Road is already being demolished. The 198,000-square-foot site planned for the retail giant, however, is on hold.
“They’ve agreed not to do any external demolition of the part of the mall that’s suppose to become the Supercenter until after we go to trial,” Hope Morrison of Responsible Growth for Northcross said.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Tuesday, August 28 | 0 comments | Permalink
ARIZONA SITE FIGHT: ELECTION COULD DETERMINE DEVELOPMENT OUTCOM
Ballot Issue could Nip Gilbert Retail Site in Bud [East Valley (Ariz.) Tribune]
A plan to build a 50-acre shopping center at Riggs and Higley roads in Gilbert is at risk of being scrapped by a November election - even though many neighbors say they are eager for more convenient shopping.
“I’d love it,” Seville resident Rich Paschal said of the planned shopping center. “Right now, there’s not much retail. I personally see it as progress.”
But whether residents ever see the planned Greer Towne Center likely depends on the outcome of one of four issues on Gilbert’s Nov. 6 ballot. Voters will decide the fate of a town agreement to repay the center’s developer for road construction in the area, and if that’s shot down, the developer plans to abandon the project altogether.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Monday, August 27 | 0 comments | Permalink
Texas Site Fight: The Calm Before The Storm?
Wal-Mart Truce - The Calm Before The Storm? [XKAN-TV News, Texas]
When word got out late last fall that the city of Austin had approved a site plan at a North Austin mall that included a Wal-Mart store, it didn’t take long for an organization called Responsible Growth for Northcross to get off the ground.
“We started with, I think, six people in a coffee shop, and within two days, it was a dozen people at somebody’s house, and within two weeks, we had several hundred people in a church,” said Hope Morrison, president for Responsible Growth for Northcross, also called RG4N.
Lincoln Properties has city approval for the Wal-Mart construction at Northcross Mall, which sits at Burnet Road and Anderson Lane, but neighborhood groups joined to stop the project with a lawsuit.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Friday, August 17 | 0 comments | Permalink
Arizona Site Fight: Victory in Cave Creek
Wal-Mart kills plan for Cave Creek store [The Arizona Republic]
Wal-Mart halted plans to build a Supercenter in Cave Creek by 2010, the company announced Tuesday, as it works to slow growth amid forecasts of shrinking consumer spending.
The big-box retailer asked to withdraw a General Plan amendment application with Cave Creek, canceling a Thursday neighborhood meeting that would have disclosed project details to residents, officials said.
If approved, the store would have comprised nearly 20 acres southeast of Cave Creek Road and Carefree Highway.
The store is one of many projects placed on hold following recent re-evaluations of the chain’s national growth strategy, said Wal-Mart zoning attorney Sean Lake.
The sudden retreat is “related to the economy cycle,” said Cave Creek Town Manager Usama Abujbarah.
The store is one of many projects placed on hold following recent re-evaluations of the chain’s national growth strategy, said Wal-Mart zoning attorney Sean Lake.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Thursday, August 16 | 0 comments | Permalink
Arizona Site Fight: Battle Looms
Possible battle looms over planned Wal-Mart [The Arizona Republic]
A Wal-Mart is planned in Cave Creek, and town officials are gearing up for a possible battle royal over plans to build a Supercenter on nearly 20 acres southeast of Cave Creek Road and Carefree Highway.
The developer would need Cave Creek Town Council approval for a major amendment in the town’s general plan, followed by rezoning to commercial, from residential, said Cave Creek Planning Director Ian Cordwell.
The entire process could take months, even years, Cordwell said.
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Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Thursday, August 16 | 0 comments | Permalink
Cave Creek, AZ. Town To Poll Residents On Wal-Mart
Unless the people in Cave Creek, Arizona have been living in a cave, they know the downside of locating a Wal-Mart superstore in their town. The Town of Cave Creek is located in northern Maricopa County and is bounded by Maricopa County to the north, Phoenix to the west and south, Carefree to the east and Scottsdale to the southeast. The Town encompasses approximately 31 square miles. The town’s population in 2000 was less than 3,800 people. According to today’s Arizona Republic, local officials in Cave Creek are expecting some stones to fly over a proposed Wal-Mart superstore located—-ironically--on Carefree Highway. That 20 acre site is not likely to turn into a carefree romp for Wal-Mart. The construction of a supercenter on this site will require an amendment to the town’s general plan, plus a rezoning from residential to commercial. Based on those two facts alone, this project can be killed. Whenever land is not properly zoned, and requires the master plan to be ignored---it’s a great opportunity for a citizen’s group to lob rocks during the hearing process.
To cozy up to the neighbors, Wal-Mart is hosting one of its routine “neighborhood meetings” this Thursday at a local church. These dog and pony shows end up being all dog, and no pony. Local residents have flooded such events with opponents, turning the PR event into an anti-Wal-Mart moment. But Wal-Mart may have some selling to do with local officials as well. The town’s manager told the Arizona Republic that local officials have “mixed feelings” about the project. “The positive side is, it would generate good sales tax,” the town manager told the newspaper. “But the negative side (is) the impact to the area.” He’s not even right about the sales tax---because local merchants will fold. Town officials have already allowed a Lowe’s store to build on the same intersection of Carefree Highway, which motorists will soon want to rename, Headache Highway.
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Posted by Al Norman on Tuesday, August 14 | 0 comments | Permalink
OKLAHOMA SITE FIGHT: WAL-MART TO BUILD “URBAN” SUPERCENTER
Wal-Mart coming to downtown [Tulsa World]
Supercenter is coming downtown as the anchor tenant to a proposed East Village mixed-use redevelopment project, developers confirmed Thursday.
Real estate developers John Williams of Claremore and Tom Seay of Arkansas have teamed on the project.
Williams, sole principal of Downtown Tulsa Developers LLC, has purchase options on about 15 acres of land owned by Bill White, owner of a former car dealership, and the Nordam Group, an aerospace component manufacturer.
The property sits roughly between Frankfort Avenue and U.S. 75 between Fourth and Sixth streets.
“Once the public understands the project and what it will do to the whole east end, I can’t possibly imagine why they wouldn’t come on board,” Williams said.
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Posted by Beth Gostanian on Friday, August 03 | 1 comments | Permalink
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