Developer Goes to the Ballot
September 17, 2000
Voters in Eaton, Ohio have more to worry about than Al Gore and George W. Bush. On November 7th, city voters will also be confronted
Al Norman
Wal-Mart Parking Lot Zoned Out
September 16, 2000
In the good old days, when Sam Walton ran Wal-Mart, he liked to say that so many towns wanted a Wal-Mart, that “if some community,
Court Rules on Box Limits
September 14, 2000
Does a local community have the right to limit the presence of big box superstores? A judge in Pennsylvania — a state not known for
Wal-Mart’s Predatory Pricing
September 12, 2000
German officials have instructed Wal-Mart and two other indigenous retailers to stop holding down prices below wholesale. This no doubt sounds counter-intuitive to most Americanas,
Wal-Mart “Surprised” By Rejection
September 8, 2000
Wal-Mart recently found itself up Beavercreek without a paddle. Last month, the Beavercreek, Ohio City Council voted 6-1 to reject Wal-Mart’s attempt to turn its
Wal-Mart Slam-Dunked.
September 8, 2000
“I really don’t understand what the problem is,” developer Richard Solove told The Columbus Dispatch, on learning that his proposed 212,000 s.f. Wal-Mart supercenter had
Regional Labor Group Says Wal-Mart Superstore Is An ‘Insult’
September 7, 2000
A regional group representing organized labor says a proposed Wal-Mart superstore in the Berkshire County city of Pittsfield, Massachusetts is “an insult to the community.”
Wal-Mart: Too Many Stores
September 6, 2000
According to an August 31st story from Reuters, people on Wall Street are asking: What’s wrong with retailing these days? “Too many stores,” the article
Wal-Mart Splits Unity.
September 1, 2000
“It’s a shame that a small community succumbs to a large corporation,” Rick O’Donnell told the Tribune-Review newspaper. “I have a nice house in Edgewater
Number 14 On Wal-Mart’s List!
August 31, 2000
Residents of Topsham, Maine may think their community is number #1 — but now they know that as far as Wal-Mart is concerned, they were
MAD at Home Depot
August 31, 2000
They call themselves MADSET: the Milford Alliance to Defeat Sprawl at Exit Ten. Residents in this small community have organized to push off the map
Home Depot Not A Good Fit
August 30, 2000
Residents in the Visitacion Valley neighborhood of San Francisco are hoping to prevent a visitation from a planned 108,000 s.f. Home Depot. According to a
The Berkshires Seek Size Cap
August 26, 2000
Like an ever-growing number of communities across the country, the picturesque town of Lenox, Massachusetts is facing surburban developers who will change the character of
Citizens Gather Signatures for Cap
August 26, 2000
Citizens in Maine are actively resisting big box sprawl in Ellsworth, Belfast, Rockland, and Topsham (see newsflash entries on 7/17, 6/30, 6/25, and 6/7.) In
More Dangers of Big Box Shopping
August 19, 2000
More than four years after Sprawl-Busters reported on the dangers of shopping at big box retailers, the major media is now “discovering” the issue. In
Wal-Mart Slam Dunked–Again
August 18, 2000
One defeat was not enough to kill Wal-Mart in Mason City, Iowa. Local officials were so eager to see Wal-Mart come to town — even
Wal-Mart Wants to Dump on Iowa Town
August 18, 2000
I visited beautiful Decorah, Iowa back in December of 1998 at the invitation of the Citizens for Responsible Development. They were trying to stop Wal-Mart
More Wal-Mart Gun Violence
August 18, 2000
On August 5, 2000, 42 year old Fred Nelson went to his local Wal-Mart store on Hudson Drive in Stow, Ohio, and purchased a sawed-off
Zoning Restrictions Discussed
August 13, 2000
According to reports from sprawl-busters in Peachtree City, GA, which has been battling with Home Depot and Wal-Mart incursions, the city’s Planning Commission will discuss
Blue Valley Fights Wal-Mart
August 13, 2000
All that residents in Stanley, Kansas want is growth that is proportional to residential growth, and appropriate in scale. Their community, which was annexed 15
Wal-Mart Loses Personal Injury Case
August 13, 2000
It took a jury only 3 hours to award New Hampshire resident Gail Yount $550,000 for injuries she sustained while shopping at Wal-Mart. It took
Home Depot Smacks of Bad Faith
August 10, 2000
Home Depot just didn’t have the answers to please local officials at a recent meeting of the Mountain View, CA Environmental Planning Commission. Home Depot
Lowe’s Pushing Out Senior Citizens
August 6, 2000
Even I, who has fought superstores for the past 7 years, was appalled to read in today’s Cincinnati Enquirer a story about Lowe’s trying to
Wal-Mart Bounces Rubbermaid
August 6, 2000
The Akron Beacon Journal (www.ohio.com) carried a 4 part series on megastores in mid July, including an insight to Wal-Mart’s power over its manufacturing vendors.
Trouble in Home Depot’s Home Town
August 3, 2000
The natives are restless in Home Depot’s home town. A citzen’s group called the Northwest Community Alliance (NCA) has been fighting a plan to build
Wal-Mart Hits Snag
August 1, 2000
We reported on 11/20/99 (see newsflash) that many residents of Peachtree City did want Home Depot to branch out in their city, but in recent
Land Use Board Says Wal-Mart Needed More Time To Respond
August 1, 2000
A Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) in Oregon has ruled that Oregon City did not give Wal-Mart enough time to rebut some of the
Another death at Home Depot
July 31, 2000
On the late afternoon of Sunday, July 9th, around 6 pm, twin brothers Dennis and Jeffrey Mead went shopping at the Federal Road Home Depot
City Rejects Wal-Mart
July 21, 2000
On July 18th. the Colleyville, Texas City Council listened to the concerns of its citizens and voted against rezoning land for a Wal-Mart “Neighborhood Market”.
3 year old killed at Home Depot
July 20, 2000
On Sunday afternoon, May 29, 2000, around 4:30 pm, 3 year old Janessa Horner was inside the Twin Falls, Idaho Home Depot when she was
6 Month Moratorium Passed
July 19, 2000
Sprawl-Busters in Belfast, Maine have filed the following report on the latest anti-sprawl activity in their town: Tonight (July 18th, 2000) the Belfast, Maine City
Wal-Mart’s irradiation problem
July 17, 2000
If you ever saw it, you would even say it glows! Here’s the a press release put out in May about irradiated food being test-marketed
Home Depot Sued By Homeowners
July 15, 2000
A Las Vegas couple has sued Home Depot for breach of contract and fraud in a case that the plaintiffs say involves the building supply
No Sewer for Wal-Mart
July 12, 2000
The Queen Anne’s County (Maryland) Commissioners voted on May 23rd not to grant a water and sewer connection for a proposed 154,000 s.f. Wal-Mart supercenter
Home Depot Paints NYC Orange
July 10, 2000
In a self-congratulatory company press release, Home Depot announced today that it will tie a 2,200 s.f. orange apron to the columns of the “mighty”
Wal-Mart Wins “Toxicity” Award
July 8, 2000
Wal-Mart’s public relations people must have scratched their heads over an unwelcomed “award” the company received a couple of weeks ago from a group of
Wal-Mart Warehouse Defeated
July 8, 2000
In order to serve its rapacious growth, Wal-Mart has planned to build 11 new distribution centers, those enormous, 1 million square foot brain centers that
Wal-Mart Statistics
July 7, 2000
Wal-Mart has indicated that it wants to add 230 stores to its units in the United States (165 supercenters, 40 discount stores, and 25 Sam’s
Wal-Mart Sales 3.6 Times Rivals
July 7, 2000
According to the just-released list of top 100 retailers compiuled by the National Retail Federation and Triversity, Inc. Wal-Mart, with 1999 sales of $165 billion,
Empty Wal-Mart Eyesores
July 7, 2000
Q: How long does a Wal-Mart last? A: In Bardstown, Kentucky, the answer is nine years. Wal-Mart is trying to move into its 3rd store
Wal-Mart Threatens Lawsuits
July 4, 2000
Sam Walton used to say that if a town, “for whatever reason”, didn’t want a Wal-Mart, that his company would not go in and “create
Wal-Mart’s Maine Event
June 30, 2000
Wal-Mart wants to be the main retailer in Maine, and has launched a multi-town assault on vacationland. Sprawl-busters in Rockland, Topsham and Belfast are already
If Home Depot Happens, We’ll Close
June 30, 2000
Linda Lee wasted no time in letting members of the Metropolitan Planning Commission know how she felt about Home Depot coming to town. “If this
The “Nice” Home Depot
June 29, 2000
According to the Glastonbury Citizen newspaper, developers in Glastonbury, Connecticut are promising local residents that their 131,795 s.f. Home Depot will be “nice” and “well
‘No Way I Would Want Wal-Mart Next To My Home.’
June 29, 2000
A developer wants to build a 225,000 s.f. Wal-Mart Super Center on 22 acres on U.S. Route 13 in between Dover and Cheswold, Delaware, plus
Dangers of Shopping At Wal-Mart
June 27, 2000
Over the years I have written about some of the dangers of shopping at stores like Wal-Mart and Home Depot. Here’s another one, this time
Crime in Wal-Mart Parking Lots
June 27, 2000
In January of 1998, if you had entered the Wal-Mart in Oxnard, California, you would have been under the watchful eye of no less than
Town Passes Abuting Projects Law
June 27, 2000
On June 3, 2000 (see below) we profiled the battle going on in New Rochelle, New York regarding a huge proposed IKEA furniture store and
Mayor Gets His Home Depot
June 27, 2000
Mayor Bill Souder got the Home Depot he wanted. It looked like tough going at first, because the Planning & Zoning Commission in North Richland
Ban on Superstores.
June 27, 2000
The devastating impact of superstores on small town America has not been lost on other countries. Ireland, Norway, and now Argentina have placed limits on
