Wal-Mart Shifts to Smaller Formats, But Superstores Remain
March 2, 2014
The media made a lot of Wal-Mart’s recent announcement that it would be building more smaller format stores. But less noticed was the fact that
Al Norman
County Sends Wal-Mart Plan To City, Citizen Appeal Possible
March 1, 2014
On February 15th, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart was attempting to return to the small community of Crestwood, Kentucky—where the giant retailer once had a discount
Wal-Mart’s Return To This Small City Doesn’t Sit Well
February 15, 2014
Just before Christmas of 2013, Wal-Mart announced that it was returning to Crestwood, Kentucky, a community of less than 5,000 people. The giant retailer had
City Officials Caught Giving Wal-Mart Secret “Crooked” Deal
February 8, 2014
About six months ago, Sprawl-Busters reported on a citizen’s battle against a Wal-Mart superstore in Cibolo, Texas. Today, everyone in this city of roughly 18,000
Small City Puts Wal-Mart Deal On Ice For A Year–But Back Door Still Open
January 30, 2014
In May of 2013, the city of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin reached agreement with a mall developer to construct a huge big box “Town Centre” (which is
Big Box Darwinism
January 20, 2014
On December 4, 2013, Sprawl-Busters reported that city of Rock Hill, South Carolina, a community of roughly 68,000 people, was turning into a grocery store
According to Wal-Mart, their associates, otherwises known as “Walmartians”, are “empowered to make d?
January 9, 2014
According to Wal-Mart, their associates, otherwises known as “Walmartians”, are “empowered to make decisions, take risks, and yes, even make mistakes in the cause of
Wal-Mart Seeks Grocery Expansion Despite Traffic Concerns
January 4, 2014
Residents of Middle Township, New Jersey learned this week that the Wal-Mart in their community wants to get bigger, by expanding its grocery square footage,
Leave it to Rite Aid to try and pave over Paradise. But that’s exactly what got the citizens of Para?
December 30, 2013
Leave it to Rite Aid to try and pave over Paradise. But that’s exactly what got the citizens of Paradise riled. Rite Aid, which likes
Wal-Mart Plays Two Villages Off Each Other
December 28, 2013
Wal-Mart had a special Christmas surprise for the tiny village of Glenwood, Illinois (pop. 9,045), which is located about 18 miles due south of Chicago.
“We’re not just opposing a Wal-Mart, we’re in the process of preventing the destruction of the commu?
December 28, 2013
“We’re not just opposing a Wal-Mart, we’re in the process of preventing the destruction of the community.” So says the former Mayor of Mt. Airy,
Mayor Plays A No-Win Game of Musical Retailers
December 21, 2013
The small city of Rolling Meadows, Illinois is playing a game of musical retailers–a game which has no real winners. This community of 24,241 people
Wal-Mart’s Plan To Move Across the Street Draws Objections
December 15, 2013
Shortly before Thanksgiving, Wal-Mart officials were caught off-guard when the Planning Board in Bowie, Maryland voted to oppose the retailer’s request for a “special exception”
Another Small Town Mayor Falls for Wal-Mart’s Voodoo Economics
December 7, 2013
Byram is a small community in Mississippi with only 11, 721 people. If anyone in Byram is addicted to cheap Chinese imports, there’s a Wal-Mart
Mayor Brags He “Snagged” a Wal-Mart, But City Gets Hooked
December 4, 2013
The Mayor of Horn Lake, Mississippi, a suburb of Memphis, proudly posed before cameras this week with a grappling hook in his hand, next to
A Swarm of 4 Wal-Mart Proposals
December 4, 2013
The media in Rock Hill, South Carolina describes neighbors as “cautiously optimistic” about a proposed Wal-Mart superstore in their backyards. But there was no optimism
Many residents in Accokeek, MD want to keep their community “open,green and rural.” That’s why the M?
November 22, 2013
Many residents in Accokeek, MD want to keep their community “open,green and rural.” That’s why the Moyaone Association of homeowners voted recently to oppose a
Mayor Not Swayed By The “Love to Hate Wal-Mart” Movement
November 17, 2013
Tom Ryan, the Mayor of Blaine, Minnesota (pop. 59,412) is convinced that Wal-Mart is a good economic influence on his city. But even a strong
Residents Launch Effort to Starve Wal-Mart superstore.
November 16, 2013
Is it possible to starve a Wal-Mart superstore? Residents in Tigard, Oregon, a small suburb of Portland, want to find out. After their City Council
Wal-Mart Drops Plan After Negative Reaction At Plan Commission
November 9, 2013
Wal-Mart knows how to count to nine—and in Northbrook, Illinois, the math just didn’t add up for Wal-Mart. So on November 8th, the retailer officially
Wal-Mart Wants Rezoning To Build In Neighbor’s Back Yards
November 6, 2013
If you live in Rock Hill, South Carolina (pop. 68,094), you have no less than 8 Wal-Mart stores to shop at within 20 miles—including two
It’s All About the Water—And Wal-Mart
October 26, 2013
The tiny town of Oriental, North Carolina (pop 900) has 3 Wal-Mart superstores within 30 miles—the closest one being in Havelock, N.C. 18 miles away.
Governor “Dead Wrong” At Wal-Mart Opening
October 19, 2013
Sue Prent is one of the diehard activists in St. Albans, Vermont who fought the opening of a Wal-Mart in the town on the edge
Local Officials Nix #4.4 Million Tax Subsidy for Wal-Mart
October 12, 2013
Some towns have to beat a Wal-Mart more than once. The village of Tinley Park, Illinois defeated Wal-Mart in 2008, but the company did not
Critics Say Wal-Mart is Responsible for Deforestation in Acapulco
October 3, 2013
This week Sprawl-Busters received the following field report from Dr. Enrique Bonilla Rodriguez, the Founder and Coordinator of the National Front Against Walmart, based in
If Home Depot offered your community $1 million to take their store, would your town turn them down??
October 2, 2013
If Home Depot offered your community $1 million to take their store, would your town turn them down? That’s what they did in Reading, MA,
Officials Whack Reisidents With Another Huge Fee To Appeal Wal-Mart Decision
September 30, 2013
Democracy ain’t cheap in Whitehall, Michigan. One month ago, Sprawl-Busters was contacted by angry residents in Whitehall Township, Michigan. According to anti-Wal-Mart activists in Whitehall,
“We didn’t anticipate a negative vote.I really thought they would grant it.” That’s what the lawyer ?
September 22, 2013
“We didn’t anticipate a negative vote.I really thought they would grant it.” That’s what the lawyer for the developer told reporters after Home Depot was
Not here, Planners tell Home Depot. That’s the headline in the Patriot Ledger newspaper. Planners vo?
September 21, 2013
Not here, Planners tell Home Depot. That’s the headline in the Patriot Ledger newspaper. Planners voted 3-1 against a special zoning permit to allow a
Wal-Mart Gets Chilly Reception For Third Superstore
September 21, 2013
Shoppers in Green Bay, Wisconsin who are addicted to cheap Chinese imports don’t have far to go to blow their paycheck. There are two Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Blames Environmental Uncertainties for Superstore Plan Demise
September 19, 2013
It was short, controversial life for the Wal-Mart superstore in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Three months to the day. Back on June 18, 2013, Wal-Mart officially announced
Wal-Mart Goes Down, Loses Huge Welfare Subsidy
September 9, 2013
It is the sweetest six words that any anti-Wal-Mart group can hear: “We have decided not to proceed with our involvement.” A Wal-Mart spokesman told
63 Year Old Wal-Mart Worker Lives Just Above Poverty Line
August 31, 2013
Walmart likes to say “our people make the difference.” Aubretia Maria Edick is one of those Walmart people who wants to ‘make a difference’ in
Officlals OK Wal-Mart, Then Enact Large Fee For Citiens To Appeal Decision
August 31, 2013
It turns out that free speech can be very expensive. Citizens in Whitehall Township, Michigan who want to exercise their First Amendment right to petition
Anti-Wal-Mart Activists Call For Community-Wide Boycott of Wal-Mart
August 31, 2013
After the city of Tigard, Oregon approved a Wal-Mart supertore, opponents did not go away. The group Tigard First announced this week a “new incarnation”
Half Built Wal-Mart To Sit Empty Another Year
August 10, 2013
A deal approved in court this past week has ended the contentious battle in Bakersfield, California over a Wal-Mart supercenter that had to stop work
Residents Want a “Dry” Wal-Mart
August 10, 2013
At a 2010 zoning hearing in Cibolo, Texas, one resident apparently showed up to express concern about the rezoning of land along Borgfield Road from
Wal-Mart’s “Invisible Army” of Lobbyists
July 27, 2013
Wal-Mart faces many threats to its ongoing profitability. That’s why it employs two platoons worth of lobbyists, and spends millions of dollars annually to minimize
Home Depot Backs Out.
July 27, 2013
Home Depot threw its plans for Braintree, MA into reverse last week, and its local attorney says the company is not coming back. That was
Mayor Announces Opposition To Wal-Mart, Calls Superstore “A Step Backward.”
July 27, 2013
On July 25, 2013, Mayor Alex Morse of Holyoke, Massachustts held a press conference with neighborhood activists by his side, to announce his “firm opposition”
Appeals Court Orders Wal-Mart To Produce Hundreds of Documents
July 12, 2013
Residents in Ceres, California have been boxing out a Wal-Mart superstore since 2007. This week, they won an important first-step victory in a court battle
Attention Home Depot shoppers: A group of 14 institutional investors in Home Depot has sponsored a s?
July 3, 2013
Attention Home Depot shoppers: A group of 14 institutional investors in Home Depot has sponsored a shareholder’s resolution to be considered at the company’s 1998
City Offers Millions In Subsidies to Build Wal-Mart Superstore
June 29, 2013
Angry residents in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin want Wal-Mart to walk away from its plans to build a superstore in this small community of roughly 16,000 people.
Residents File Lawsuit to Block Wal-Mart Rezoning
June 29, 2013
New Berlin, Wisconsin is a city just west of Milwaukee with just under 40,000 people. It has a median household income that’s about 44% higher
Hitting the Target
June 23, 2013
A group of citizens in Fountain Hills, AZ, calling themselves the “Logical Land Use Committee” has formed around a referendum issue challenging the Town Council’s
What I Learned On The Bus To Bentonville
June 15, 2013
The town square in Bentonville, Arkansas was filled with an estimated 2,000 people wearing yellow rain slickers that said “Wal-Mart — Not in My Neighborhood.”
Mayor Will Watch Wal-Mart Destroy His Own Business
June 5, 2013
In April of 2011, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart’s legal team had drafted a 60 page zoning document that allowed it to build a huge superstore
Village Saturated With Retail Upset By New Wal-Mart Plan
May 26, 2013
Almost a month ago, Wal-Mart filed a zoning and subdivision application in the Village of Northbrook, Illinois according to memo from the Village Manager, who
Residents Wise To Wal-Mart’s “Astro-Turf” Tactics
May 19, 2013
For roughly 20 years, Wal-Mart has been imitating the citizen’s groups that have battled to keep the giant retailer from entering their town. One Wal-Mart
There Is Nothing ‘Fair’ About the Internet Sales Tax
May 9, 2013
Just over two years ago I wrote a column on The Huffington Post which charged that giant retailers like Wal-Mart and Target were using mom