On October 6, 2010, Sprawl-Busters reported that city officials in Baltimore, Maryland were throwing public cash at the world’s largest retailer, in what could be
On June 22, 2007, Sprawl-Busters reported that residents of Gresham, Oregon were celebrating a defeat over Wal-Mart. Opponents who fought a Wal-Mart superstore gathered at
After five years of expensive delays and setbacks, Wal-Mart is still working on its superstore plans in Willows, California — but they had to first
On November 6, 2006, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart had proposed to expand its store in Antioch, California, adding 72,980 s.f. to create a 203,103 s.f.
Wal-Mart has been in Mexico for nearly two decades, first through a joint venture with a company call Cifra to open Sam’s Clubs in 1991,
Sprawl-Busters reported on December 10, 2006 that residents from the Austin, Texas neighborhoods of Allendale, Crestview, Shoal Creek and Brentwood had all signed petitions opposing
City officials in Tehachapi, California were irked this week when Wal-Mart produced a glossy pamphlet promoting their superstore project, but made the flier look like
Wal-Mart announced this week that it plans to build its 18th store in the Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota area, by purchasing a struggling 17 acre retail
Wal-Mart Moms are not going to like this story. The world’s largest retailer was sued by the state of New Jersey two years ago for
The United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) dof Canada won two important victories this past week against the world’s largest retailer. A Court of
The gap between what public officials do publicly, versus what they say privately is big enough to fit a Wal-Mart supercenter. A citizen’s group in
There are currently six Wal-Mart stores in the Reno and Sparks, Nevada market area. Four of these stores are supercenters. When you look at a
Sprawl-Busters first reported on the battle over a Wal-Mart in North Whitehall, Pennsylvania on September 25, 2007. What probably looked like a three month process
Residents in Millville, New Jersey don’t have far to travel to find a plentiful source of cheap Chinese imports. There are six Wal-Mart stores within
Two huge superstore chains have collided in New Hampshire, with the result that a proposed Wal-Mart superstore is now stuck in traffic gridlock. Wal-Mart has
On July 26, 2009, Sprawl-Busters reported that a proposed Wal-Mart superstore had stimulated two lawsuits against its efforts to pave over tiny Brooklyn, Connecticut. Four
The welfare bailouts for Wal-Mart continue, this time just outside of the nation’s capital. On February 24, 2010, Sprawl- Busters reported that the city of
On April 15, 2009, Sprawl-Busters reported that a proposed Wal-Mart supercenter in Massachusetts had been thrown into a deep freeze. A rival grocery chain store,
The battleline has been drawn between two towns north of Boston, Massachusetts, and the line happens to be the same boundary line that separates one
It was hardly the graceful entrance into South Africa that Wal-Mart had hoped for. As soon as the U.S-based retailer announced this week that it
Wal-Mart is trying to add a new skill to its resume: community organizer. The giant retailer for several years has been promoting its “Customer Action
On May 18, 2010, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart opponents in a small Canadian city had outlasted the world’s largest retailer, and scored a major victory
Wal-Mart has taken the unusual step of blocking its own progress on a superstore proposal by filing a lawsuit against a community that has already
Wal-Mart was exposed to too much sun this week in Delray Beach, Florida, where the company’s plans for a ‘small’ superstore just melted away. According
At a Planning Commissioner’s hearing in Rohnert Park, California in late April, 2010, Wal-Mart couldn’t scrape up one vote in support of super-sizing its current
Since 2005, Sprawl-Busters has written a dozen stories about the never-ending battle against Wal-Mart in Tarpon Springs, Florida. But this week, the story took an
Sandy, Pennsylvania has a population of around 11,600 people. “Great neighborhoods and schools,” the township boasts, “good jobs, bustling commerce, superior transportation access, and year
On January 4, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that it was only 19 degrees in Pennfield, Michigan, and that Wal-Mart’s plans to build a supercenter in this
There’s always something exciting going on at Wal-Mart — especially in the parking lot and the bathrooms. This autumn’s back-to-school season has been no exception.
Citizens in Sheboygan, Wisconsin have learned the hard way that Wal-Mart will come to your town, and then depart. When they go, they can leave
Over the past 15 years, most of Wal-Mart’s new stores are replacement stores that shut down another unit nearby. No company in the history of
Wal-Mart opponents in Roanoke, Virginia have been through one roller coaster of a ride over the past four years. On March 13, 2007, Sprawl-Busters reported
Almost two years ago, citizens in the neighboring towns of Fairlawn and Copley, Ohio got some big news: Wal-Mart was dropping plans to build a
Despite spending more than $246,750 on a Sacramento, California lobbying firm, Wal-Mart lost a major environmental ‘rollback’ bill in the California legislature this week. The
In October of 2009, Eduardo Castro-Wright, then Wal-Mart’s vice chairman of U.S, stores, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, “The writing is on the wall, we are
On July 3, 2010, Sprawl-Busters reported that city of Houston, Texas not only has no zoning, but apparently it thinks rich developers need public welfare
Costco generally has a better reputation than Wal-Mart, but this is only because its growth plans are much lower than Wal-Mart’s, so the company is
Some last minute wrangling has held up a proposed Wal-Mart superstore in a small township in Pennsylvania — but a final vote in favor of
There was no doubt about how the Planning and Zoning Board in Delray, Florida felt about Wal-Mart. The giant retailer’s proposal to rezone land in
For companies like Wal-Mart, silence is golden. If they can silence their opponents, they get the gold. In the township of Marple, Pennsylvania, local officials
On July 26, 2009, Sprawl-Busters reported that a proposed Wal-Mart superstore had stimulated two lawsuits against its efforts to pave over tiny Brooklyn, Connecticut. Four
Things are heating up this week in Delray Beach, Florida — but it has nothing to do with the August heat. On April 30, 2010,
On March 14, 2007, Wal-Mart sacked its discount store in Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia, and opened up a larger superstore in neighboring Bedford. The Bedford
The Chronicle of Philanthropy declared this week that Wal-Mart was “the most generous” company in America, having donated more than $288 million in cash in
Wal-Mart hates to give up on any chance to make a few extra bucks, and the retailer has been known to become fixated on entering
What we have here is a failure to communicate. Members of the Borough Council in Exeter, Pennsylvania looked pretty foolish this week when it became
“There are only two kinds of people,” says Linda Elam, Mayor of Mount Juliet, Tennessee. “Those who live in Mt. Juliet and those who want
On May 10, 2009, Sprawl-Busters reported that a newspaper poll in Rohnert Park, California indicated that the public is losing enthusiasm for big box stores.
The urban sprawl wars continue this week, as the Chicago, Illinois City Council approved the third Wal-Mart for the windy city, and officials in Houston
On September 28, 2007, Sprawl-Busters reported that the town of Wellsville, New York was up against a Wal-Mart. Almost three years later, all is not
The strategies written here were produced by Sprawl-Busters in 2006 at the request of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), mainly for citizen groups that were fighting Walmart. But the tips for fighting unwanted development apply to any project—whether its fighting Dollar General, an Amazon warehouse, or a Home Depot.
Big projects, or small, these BATTLEMART TIPS will help you better understand what you are up against, and how to win your battle.