On February 24 Newsflash reported that Wal-Mart Canada was voted down in the city of Surrey, British Columbia. On March 1st, the headlines read: “Second Chance for Wal-Mart”. One of the Councilors on the Surrey Council moved to rescind the first 6-3 vcte to block Wal-Mart. One of the Councilors who voted against Wal-Mart changed his mind, urging local residents to work together with Wal-Mart to mitigate problems created by the size of the store, rather than “just flat saying no”. But another Councilor, Bob Bose, told the newspaper he didn’t think the votes to support Wal-Mart could be found on the Council. The developer pleaded with the Council to give Wal-Mart an opportunity to go back and work with the residents. The developer said support for Wal-Mart “in the greater community” was there, because he received letters, faxes and emails in favor of the project. Activist Cathy McCashin, who led the opposition to the plan, said of the vote to rescind: “I can’t believe it. I feel like I’m in a nightmare. I feel very betrayed. The (Wal-Mart) is in a residential area, and it’s not an appropriate area. We’re not negotiating this.” Fortunately, the nightmare only lasted about a week. The Surrey Council gave Wal-Mart a second chance, but their proposal was nixed again, this time by a 5-4 vote. So community leaders in Surrey are now celebrating their second victory over Wal-Mart in just a matter of weeks.
For more details of the victory over Wal-Mart Canada, email: [email protected].