Adjacent Wal-Marts May Dodge Size Curbs

[Rose Siding]

Robin Gottlieb cringed when she learned of Wal-Mart's plans to build a store the size of three football fields near her home in Dunkirk, a cozy hamlet in Southern Maryland ringed by rolling tobacco fields. The 44-year-old librarian feared it would overwhelm her tightknit community and usher in even more development.

After intense lobbying from Gottlieb and her neighbors, Calvert County officials passed tough regulations last summer that limited the size of big-box stores in quaint town centers such as Dunkirk's. Gottlieb and her friends arranged to cheer the victory with celebratory drinks.

But Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, appears to have hit upon a novel way around the rules: divide the store in two.

In what company officials are calling one of the first arrangements of its kind in the country, Wal-Mart plans to build a 74,998-square-foot store cheek by jowl with a 22,689-square-foot garden center. The two Wal-Marts -- each with its own entrance, utilities, bathrooms and cash registers -- would have a combined area 30 percent larger than the 75,000-square-foot limit for a single store in Dunkirk.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12175-2005Mar6.html

Why do I see this idea in a message bubble over the head of a guy tying a young woman to a railroad track?

[Skink]

1. Maybe they'll elect a mayor...

Set up a police force and start charging rent.:argh:

[all.of.me]

2. oh god no!!

i see another fight against wal mart coming to my neighborhood soon then!

we don't even have a super wal mart here. we have successfully battled it for years. we have restricted the size of big box stores to 80,000 square feet, so i can see them trying this tactic next time around. heaven help us....

[rogue_bandit]

5. In our town...

In our city (can't really call it a town anymore, I guess) we have an ordinance that requires stores to fit into the surroundings. WalMart came in and got permission from the Archetectural Review Commission to build their big ugly box next to some very small stores that were spread apart and had some significant archetectural relief.

We got the city council to repeal that permission...basically on the grounds that it didn't fit in with existing structures. Now WalMart is appealing the council's decision at the state level...we haven't heard yet but the state tends to go along with the cities.

We have a big box ordinance running through committees but it probably won't make it in time to prevent WalMarts next plan submittals. Sounds like we might get one of those two-fer deals ourselves (two ugly boxes instead of one).

The "community oriented" WalMart folks had bought our only real ballpark (big lights, stands, once held AA Oakland A's team) from the County (county wanted the money). Rather than leave the ballpark around and usable until they were ready to build they just dismantled the thing, leaving local teams with no nice place to play.

Ranting continues in my head....

[jdj]

3. If I'm not mistaken that is what they did here

the garden center and shop have separate entrances, but are connected, but I don't know if that counts.

and they are driving everyone else out of business, so there is no where else left to shop. If that happens, my ass will make do, make it myself, or do without.

[Chipper Chat]

4. And have you noticed their commerials are getting really sucky!

Three in an hour on CNN tonight. Sugary female voices with a slight southern drawl (prosylitizing?) saying how Walmart did this & that for the community, etc:
Sickening. I would starve before I'd buy a loaf of bread there.

[LizW]

6. Their commercials are absolutely shameless

I want to throw up every time I hear one. EVERY time they are in the news for doing some bad thing to their employees or to communities, here comes a new commercial with people telling glowingly how Wal Mart is the best thing that ever happened to them.

When Wal Mart was being sued for sex discrimmination, there was the one about the woman who started in the card department and is now a manager. When they first started being criticised for not paying enough for their employees to afford health insurance, out came the guy whose child was sick and Wal Mart's great insurance was such a godsend. The latest is the most pukey ever: The guy from another store telling how great his business is since Wal Mart came and how they send him customers all the time.

How do these people sleep at night?

:grr:

[Nostradammit]

7. "How do these people sleep at night?"

They don't. They are vampires and they sleep during the day.



"You load sixteen tons an' what do you get?
Another day older deeper and debt.
St Peter don't you call me I cause can't go:
I owe my soul to the company store."



Fuck Walmart.

[saigon68]

10. LOL ----They are vampires and they sleep during the day.

Good One!!!

[DeepModem Mom]

8. kick

[Roland99]

9. Yeah...nice way to kick city officials in the groin

That'll teach them to mess with big business.