Columbia, Missouri has three Wal-Mart supercenters. That’s about one more than is necessary in this city of roughly 100,000 people. On January 20, 2006, Sprawl-Busters
The city of Mesa, Arizona has 20 Wal-Marts within a 10 mile radius. Half of those stores are supercenters. Although Wal-Mart is doing much better
After more than a year of no visible activity, Wal-Mart has returned to Hernando County, Florida with a back-up site to end its legal stalemate
“We party for just about anything over here,” says the Mayor of Pass Christian, Mississippi, “but you better believe we’re going to have a party
Wal-Mart’s dream of locating a superstore in Rocky Point, Long Island, has crashed on a rocky point. On March 20, 2008 Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart
On November 12, 2008, Sprawl-Busters updated a Wal-Mart story from Red Bluff, California. Roughly 8 months ago, Wal-Mart lost a high stakes wager in this
Sprawl-Busters first wrote about Yakima, Washington on February 21, 2003. At the time, citizens wrote about their opposition to a proposed Wal-Mart superstore: “Yakima is
On September 9, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart had submitted an application to expand its discount store in the tiny community of Berlin, Maryland. Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart has had a bumpy ride on the Moon. The retailer’s plans for Moon, Pennsylvania have bounced up and down during public hearings, and this
Wal-Mart never seems to know when it’s holding a losing hand. On March 7, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart had lost a high stakes bet
The city of Sartell, Minnesota has roughly 14,300 people. The city claims it is “the place you’ve been looking for.” For Wal-Mart Realty, that’s certainly
Wal-Mart has 4 existing stores in Corpus Christi, Texas — two of them supercenters. But the company has been scouting out a number of new
The headline on Wal-Mart’s press release this week simply makes no sense: “Wal-Mart Backs Main Street.” After having ravaged Main Street merchants for the past
There were hugs and cheers this week in Greenville, North Carolina, as citizen pressure won out over the world’s largest retailer. On October 22, 2008,
Wal-Mart Canada seems determined to ignore the zoning map in Stratford, Ontario, and wants the community to change its plans to suit the corporation. Even
On March 13, 2005, Sprawl-Busters reported that the residents of Chandler, Arizona had grown used to Wal-Mart’s on-again, off-again superstore plans. Since 2003, Wal-Mart has
“We took on the 800-pound gorilla, took them to the mat. We ended up at the bottom this time, but there will be very many
It took seventeen months of grueling controversy, but activists in Bloomington, Minnesota knocked Target off the mark in their city, and in the corporation’s home
One community in upstate New York wants to gain a Wal-Mart by closing a neighboring town’s Wal-Mart. On March 26, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart
One person in Summit County, Utah has just made of the biggest land use mistake in the history of the county. On July 25, 2008,
More often than necessary, Wal-Mart collides with history. One hundred and fifty four years after one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War, Wal-Mart
Three years ago, citizens in Iowa City, Iowa stopped Wal-Mart in the courts. The citizens sued to block a superstore, and while the case was
There was a time in America when Wal-Mart could expect a two or three month review process for its new store permitting. But those days
Wal-Mart, for some internal reason, holds an analysts meeting every October — right before Halloween — to announce its growth projection plans for the year.
Brooklyn, Connecticut describes itself as “a town in flux.” This small community of roughly 7,900 people is certainly in flux this week, as many residents
This is how Wal-Mart often operates. They negotiate for months or years with a landowner under cover, and then, when the deal is ripe, suddenly
To understand the absurdity of the new Wal-Mart supercenter opening on Route 27 in Edison, New Jersey, you simply have to drive around this community.
Just about two years ago, on November 7, 2006, Sprawl-Busters reported that the huge shadow of a proposed Wal-Mart supercenter had prompted citizens in Victorville,
Walkerton, Indiana (population 2,200) is a very small community whose population hasn’t changed much in the past twenty years. The town says it offers “opportunities
Wal-Mart never was very good at reading a zoning map. It’s not that they can’t figure it out — it’s that they don’t care how
On June 6, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that a developer had proposed building a 225,000 s.f. Wal-Mart Super Center on 22 acres on U.S. Route 13
Last night Wal-Mart spoke ten little words that made hundreds of its opponents in Cordova, Tennessee very happy: “We’re done. We’re not going to build
The mask has fallen, and the face of Wal-Mart has appeared once again. The residents of Queensbury, New York have good reason to feel a
Workers in a Wal-Mart store in Quebec have found a short cut for closing down Wal-Mart operations. While citizens groups can spend years trying to
Regulators and birds. Those two obstacles stand in Wal-Mart’s way in the community of Tarpon Springs, Florida. On October 9, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart already has three stores in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. If you are addicted to Chinese take out, you can stop by the Wal-Mart supercenter on
On October 8, 2008, Sprawl-Busters reported that Wal-Mart was getting desperate in Lodi, California. They have agreed not to leave their existing store empty if
Wal-Mart has a way of draining sales out of small towns. Elected officials in Avon, Colorado understood that — but now they are locked in
Wal-Mart is spending a lot of time and money these days behaving like a grassroots community organizer. On September 16, 2008, Wal-Mart announced proposed plans
The Walton Family and Warren Buffet are linked in a new report critical of the appalling wages and working conditions found in a Bangladeshi sweatshop
A three and a half year battle against Wal-Mart is over — and the citizens have won. Sprawl-Busters has written 8 stories about the small
The battle over a Wal-Mart supercenter on the banks of the Anclote River in Tarpon Springs, Florida will mark its 4 year point this coming
Wal-Mart suffered another legal setback this week on Long Island. Newsday reports that the town of Riverhead, New York — which already has a Wal-Mart
Fearful that they will lose their land deal with Wal-Mart, county officials are scrambling desperately to find some way to lower the cost of the
Wal-Mart is getting desperate in Lodi, California. They have agreed not to leave an existing store empty, and are willing to pay a hefty fee
The Presidential election will be the preoccupation of millions of American voters on November 4th, but residents in one small California community will be focusing
One of the most salient features of the land use process in America is the total reliance on experts hired by the developer. Across this
On May 6, 2006, Sprawl-Busters narrated the story of residents in Apple Valley, Minnesota who were fighting a developer, Tradition, who had proposed building a
It’s payback time in Vermont. Wal-Mart has donated to Vermont Governor Jim Douglas’ re-election campaign, and now the Governor is returning the favor by speaking
For the time being, it looks like the Princess will not be awakened by a kiss from Wal-Mart. The small community of Princess Anne, in
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.