New Property Compensation Law Weakens Urban Growth Boundaries
November 27, 2004
One of the nation’s most progressive land use concepts has been successfully damaged by property rights zealots. On November 2nd, voters in Oregon approved a
November 2004
Class Action Status for ‘Off the Clock’ Lawsuit Denied in Florida
November 27, 2004
The 1st District Court of Appeals in Tallahassee, Florida has let Wal-Mart off the hook — for now — in a class action lawsuit that
City Puts 40 Conditions on Wal-Mart.
November 24, 2004
If Wal-Mart wants to build a superstore in Avondale Estates, Georgia, it’s going to be required to give up its 24 hour operations, and provide
Chinese Force Wal-Mart to Agree to Unions
November 23, 2004
Wal-Mart proved today that if it wants a market bad enough, it is willing to do extraordinary things to get it. Under mounting pressure from
Wal-Mart Fined For Used Oil Tank Violations.
November 21, 2004
The Associated Press reported this week that state officials in Florida have fined Wal-Mart $750,000 for breaking state laws regarding oil storage tanks at their
Kmart & Sears In Double Suicide Pact
November 21, 2004
Is the $11 billion merger deal announced this week between Kmart and Sears nothing more than a grizzly double-suicide note to retail America? After all,
Residents Beat Meijer’s Store–And It Only Took Six Years
November 21, 2004
Residents in the village of Lisle, Illinois probably never thought they’d see the end of the Meijer’s proposal to build a 215,000 s.f. superstore. But
Home Depot and Wal-Mart to Move Horse Graves
November 21, 2004
We’ve written in the past about Wal-Mart’s penchant for buildings stores over human remains, like the recent fiasco in Honolulu, where Wal-Mart unearthed nearly twenty
Big Box Stores Abandon Town.
November 19, 2004
Texas is the all-time leader in emptied Wal-Marts. They have more empty boxes than any other state. So it should come as no surprise to
Planning Board Nixes Wal-Mart Supercenter
November 19, 2004
Wal-Mart got off on the wrong foot this week in Gainesville, Georgia. Here’s a report from the front lines: “Last night Hall County, Georgia held
Coconut Grove Not Nuts Over Home Depot
November 19, 2004
Residents of one of Florida’s most impressive villages, Coconut Grove, kicked off an organized effort this week to stop Home Depot from taking over a
Wal-Mart and Pike’s Peak–Defiling National Treasures
November 19, 2004
There’s a big controversy in the small town of Woodland Park, Colorado, population 7,000. Here’s how local residents described the problem back in October: “It
Former Wal-Mart Exec Took Supplier Kickbacks
November 19, 2004
They say the hand is faster than the eye, which is why bribes and kickbacks are so rarely witnessed in the business world, yet so
Study Says No Jobs, Little Tax Gain From Big Box Proposal.
November 14, 2004
A nationally-known economist has concluded that a 510,000 s.f. mall including a Lowe’s, Wal-Mart and Kohl’s, proposed for Route 117 in Leominster, Massachusetts will produce
Wal-Mart Still Silent About Parking Lot Murder
November 14, 2004
On February 12, 2000, Newsflash ran a story about the death of a 42 year old man who had been shot and killed in a
Study Says Wal-Mart Raises Poverty Rates
November 13, 2004
A new report released this week by Penn State University’s Center for Economic and Community Development says that Wal-Mart stores actually “stifle” a lowering of
Voters Reject Zone For Big Boxes.
November 13, 2004
Ohio was not just a critical state in the race for President, but a lesser watched vote in Hudson, Ohio was more important to local
First Pyramids, Now Wal-Mart Near Volcano.
November 13, 2004
Wal-Mart’s incursion into the Teotichuacan, Mexico historic pyramid site has raised the ire of local residents, but now they have begun an effort to locate
Voters OK Size Cap, Block Lowe’s.
November 13, 2004
Voters in Talbot County, Maryland, hard by the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, ratified an earlier vote by county officials to place a size
Home Depot Founder Gives $1 Million for Bush Ad
November 13, 2004
Home Depot helped nail the election victory for George W. Bush. The home improvement giant’s founder, Bernie Marcus, was one of the major contributors to
Wal-Mart Supercenter Opens With A Crime
November 13, 2004
Residents in Hemet, California who warned about crime at Wal-Mart supercenters must have been saying “I told you so” this week when city taxpayers had
Residents Don’t Want a Second Wal-Mart Supercenter.
November 11, 2004
Residents in Gainesville, Georgia want to prevent Wal-Mart from making any further gains in their community. Gainesville already has a Wal-Mart supercenter, but the company
Wal-Mart Rejects “Made In USA” Business Deal.
November 11, 2004
Sam Walton boasted about his “Bring It Home To the USA” Program, which he started in 1985 “in response to the soaring U.S. trade deficit.”
Village Mayor Pleads With Town To Stop Wal-Mart
November 10, 2004
The Mayor of the Village of Albion is trying to save his community from the town of Albion’s Wal-Mart proposal. Village Mayor Ed Salvatore told
Wisconsin Taxpayers Spend Millions to Subsidize Wal-Mart workers.
November 7, 2004
Wal-Mart insists that it gives its workers a decent health care plan, but the workers may be voting with their feet. Critics have charged that
Ordinance to Allow Big Boxes Narrowly Passes
November 4, 2004
Big corporate special interests squeaked out a shallow victory on November 2nd. in Belfast, Maine. This community has already passed a zoning code to limit
Effort to Give Voters A Say In Big Boxes Falls Short.
November 4, 2004
Measure R on the Lodi, California ballot November 2nd. was defeated by a vote of 10,655 (57.7%) against imposing new restrictions on big boxes, to
Residents Get Organized to Fight Wal-Mart “Done Deal” Syndrome
November 3, 2004
Wal-Mart has stirred up another battle in the community of Helotes, Texas. A citizen’s group called the Helotes Area Heritage Association (HAHA), thinks that a
California’s Lawmakers Want Public Pension To Drop Wal-Mart Stock
November 3, 2004
Wal-Mart money helped defeat Proposition 72 in the November 2nd California election, but the retailer could win the battle yet lose the larger war. Prop