Skip to content
  • (413) 834-4284
  • [email protected]
  • 21 Grinnell St, Greenfield, Massachusetts
Search
Close
Sprawl-busters
  • Home
  • About
  • Resources
    • Links
    • Books
    • Movies
    • Home Towns, Not Home Depot
    • The Case Against Sprawl
  • Victories
  • Blog
    • Share Your Battle
  • Contact
Menu
  • Home
  • About
  • Resources
    • Links
    • Books
    • Movies
    • Home Towns, Not Home Depot
    • The Case Against Sprawl
  • Victories
  • Blog
    • Share Your Battle
  • Contact
  • Uncategorized

Town Forces Wal-Mart To Pay $3.5 Million For Road Upgrades

  • Al Norman
  • June 1, 2008
  • No Comments

Wal-Mart will be cluttering the roadways in Pennsylvania with another superstore — but this time the retailer is getting stuck with the bill for road improvements. On July 25, 2007, Sprawl-Busters reported that a newspaper poll released in the township of North Strabane, Pennsylvania revealed that people in this little town have had enough of Wal-Mart. North Strabane Township is located in northern Washington County, Pennsylvania, roughly 20 miles southwest of Pittsburgh. The Township has roughly 12,000 residents and is 27 square miles. The predominance of development in the Township is residential in nature, with almost half its land classified as agricultural. Because the township lies along several major transportation corridors (I-79, I-70, Route 19) the area has witnessed typical highway sprawl. North Strabane has eight Wal-Marts within 20 miles, including five supercenters. The corporate giant already has a supercenter just off the Route 19 exit from Interstate 70 in South Strabane, and proposed to build a store in nearby West Brownsville along route 40 as well. On June 27, 2007, supervisors in North Strabane approved a preliminary site plan for another Wal-Mart supercenter off the Route 519 exit of Interstate 79. The Observer-Reporter newspaper ran a poll asking its readers, “Should Wal-Mart open a store in North Strabane Township?” The results were 53% No, 47% Yes. Local officials in North Strabane paid no attention to local residents however, and this week, eleven months after giving their preliminary approval to the project, officials in North Strabane handed Wal-Mart a list of conditions, most of which deal with road improvements, which will cost the giant retailer $3 million to $3.5 million for changes to Route 519. The store has been downsized from 203,710 s.f. to 184,146 s.f. Turning lanes have to be added, the driveway has to be signalized, the road has to have turning lanes added. In addition, Wal-Mart will have to sign a developer’s agreement and complete a sewer plan for the state Department of Environmental Protection, as well as an erosion and sedimentation control plan. None of these agreements will kill the project, but at least taxpayers will not be asked to pay for the road improvements needed to accommodate this unnecessary store.

This Wal-Mart project in North Strabane was not proposed to fill an unmet market need, but because Wal-Mart wants more market share there. It’s all about market penetration. Such stores are not being built for folks on Main Street, but for investors on Wall Street. The area already is super-saturated with Wal-Marts, and this new store will largely draw its sales from existing stores in the area — including other Wal-Marts. This project is a waste of 61 acres of land that could have produced new jobs and revenues — instead of shifted them from other cash registers. Readers are urged to email North Strabane Township Manager, Frank Siffrinn, at [email protected] with the following message: “Dear Mr. Siffrinn, Adding another Wal-Mart superstore to the mix of 8 existing Wal-Marts with 20 miles of your office is certainly not going to add value to your township’s economic future. Before you sign any developer’s agreement with Wal-Mart, make sure you limit operating hours so this huge store is not open all night, ask them to pay for their own store security, and make sure they post a demolition bond to pay for tearing down the store if they abandon its use as an existing superstore for 12 months. Without such protections, you will end up with a noisy neighbor 24/7, added criminal activity, and, eventually an empty store that becomes blighted. These are the basic costs these days of doing business with Wal-Mart. Other towns have learned the hard way that Wal-Mart increases crime, causes other stores to fail, and ultimately will leave the township when this building no longer suits their needs — for any reason. For a community with only 12,000 people, and half of its land still agricultural use — this push into suburban sprawl will be a mistake that voters will remember for years to come.”

Like this article?

Share on facebook
Share on Facebook
Share on twitter
Share on Twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on Linkdin
Share on pinterest
Share on Pinterest
Al Norman

Al Norman

Al Norman first achieved national attention in October of 1993 when he successfully stopped Wal-Mart from locating in his hometown of Greenfield, Massachusetts. Almost 3 decades later they is still not Wal-Mart in Greenfield. Norman has appeared on 60 Minutes, was featured in three films, wrote 3 books about Wal-Mart, and gained widespread media attention from the Wall Street Journal to Fortune magazine. Al has traveled throughout the U.S., Barbados, Puerto Rico, Ireland, and Japan, helping dozens of local coalitions fight off unwanted sprawl development. 60 Minutes called Al “the guru of the anti-Wal-Mart movement.”

Leave a comment

Find Us

  • 21 Grinnell St, Greenfield, MA
  • (413) 834-4284
  • [email protected]

Helpful Links

  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
Menu
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy

Recent Posts

CHRISTIAN SMALLS, FIRED AMZN WAREHOUSE WORKER, FILES RACE DISCRIMATION LAWSUIT. …

November 16, 2020

DUE TO THE SURGE IN CORONA CASES, WMT IS LIMITING SHOPPERS TO 5 PER 1,000 SF. A…

November 16, 2020

AMAZON RECENTLY ANNOUNCED FREE 1 HOUR GROCERY PICK UP FOR PRIME MEMBER ORDERS &g…

November 15, 2020

AFTER BEING REJECTED BY THE DEERFIELD, MA PLANNING BOARD, DOLLAR GENERAL APPEALS…

November 15, 2020

WILL TRUMP ALLOW ORACLE & WALMART TO INVEST IN TIK TOK? The deadline to ban …

November 14, 2020

AMAZON ACCUSED OF BREAKING ANTITRUST RULES IN EUROPE. “Data of 3rd-party sellers…

November 14, 2020

WALMART PET CARE NOW SELLING PET INSURANCE. My 3 year old mixed breed cat would …

November 13, 2020

WALMART’S GOING TO THE DOGS. 90 M OF ITS CUSTOMERS HAVE DOGS. You’d be Goofy not…

November 13, 2020

WALMART CASHIERS STILL LOOKING FOR A SEAT. They won a $65 M lawsuit in 2019, but…

November 12, 2020

4 DAYS BEFORE THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION,THE CO-FOUNDER OF HOME DEPOT SAID: “Pres…

November 12, 2020

Recent Tweets

Al Norman 11 hours ago

RETAILER PREFERENCE INDEX RANKS AMAZON 1ST among grocers, based on a combo of a it’s “customer value proposition, emotional bonds with customers & short-term Covid Momentum.”WMT’s at bottom of list: https://t.co/FLeuzu91Pr

Read More
Al Norman 12 hours ago

THIS HEADLINE MAKES HOME DEPOT EXECS CRING: “Two men were shot while driving near a Home Depot, and ran into the store for help. “Police found a trail of blood inside the lumber dept. & 100 yards of shell casings on the ground at the Home Depot.” https://t.co/uW6dhQYhuw

Read More
Al Norman 2 days ago

SMALL BIZ CAN NOW USE PAYROLL PROTECTION PROGRAM LOANS FOR COVID PPE: a drive-thru window, ventilators, sneeze guards, outdoor biz space—for sanitation, social distancing or worker safety needs. Tens of Billions in grants still not rolled out. https://t.co/q8BcEh7leD

Read More

Ⓒ 2020 - All Rights Are Reserved

Design and Development by Just Peachy Web Design

Download Our Free Guide

Download our Free Guide

Learn How To Stop Big Box Stores And Fulfillment Warehouses In Your Community

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.