WAL-MART REPRESENTATIVES have recently asked the city's planning department what it would take to simply move into the old K-Mart building on Victoria Avenue without making any modifications in size.
"In recent weeks Wal-Mart representatives have again inquired about the rules for occupying the vacant K-Mart building," said City Manager Rick Cole. "We've reiterated the city's ordinances and procedures for processing that option. We've heard nothing definitive back from Wal-Mart about their plans and they have not submitted any application for any kind of permit."
According to Cole, the Arkansas-based retailer can't knock down any walls inside, but if all they do is repaint and redesign, they just need Design Review Committee approval and routine inspections.
The vacant K-mart building is approximately 100,000 square feet, much smaller than the typical Wal-Mart supercenter, which is usually 200,000 square feet or more. The company has already taken a 20-year lease on the property. Nearly a year ago, the retailer's representatives showed city staff a design for a 150,000-square-foot supercenter with groceries.
It would appear they are now considering the much smaller size which would conform to the city's General Plan which discourages large, big-box type retail in the Victoria Corridor and would also fit into the developing Victoria Corridor Plan.
Meanwhile, the Citizens to Preserve Ventura, a coalition of grassroots and labor groups, is in the process of circulating petitions to keep Wal-Mart away. They are calling for signatures to be turned in by Aug. 12 for an upcoming election, according to representatives who spoke at a meeting held last Wednesday for petition gathers. The election date has not yet been determined.
THE PROPOSED ORDINANCE IS AIMED at stopping a project of 90,000 square feet or more which devotes more than three percent of the sales floor area to the sale of non-taxable merchandise such as food. It would also prevent Wal-Mart from adding on to the existing building in the future, something that the upcoming Victoria Corridor Plan will likely do anyway.
"It prohibits a big-box retailer from sidestepping city process by 'piecemealing' a project, that is, opening up a smaller store now and expanding it later," said Das Williams, a Santa Barbara city councilman and legislative analyst for the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy.
The proposed ballot measure would also have stopped the new Target at the Pacific View Mall.
At the recent meeting, Williams reiterated his strong opposition to a Wal-Mart coming to town, citing the chain's reputation for driving small retailers out of business and paying low wages. "This would be like a stake in the heart to have a Wal-Mart in such a bastion of working families."
Others in town, however, welcome the added sales tax revenue in a time when the city's coffers are in need of a boost.
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The Stop Wal-Mart/CAUSE/Das Williams position is so obviously pro-union it isn't funny. I can't stand seeing the K-Mart empty. It is bad business for the entire area. Obviously people like cheap prices - look how busy Trader Joes is and if you don't like Wal-Mart (which I don't) then don't shop there!! But to try to stop it just because it isn't unionized is ridiculous. And spare me the workers in China, etc. TJ buys a ton of product from China. It is all about the unions.
No offense to our Chinese cousins but I care more about the workers in the the USA than in China.
I hate that we're too reliant on cheap crapola from China, Korea, Vietnam, etc. I hate that fact that mom and pop stores go out of business every week courtesy of the WalMart's, Target's etc.
But we can't stop them. And we all like to buy our cheap products. I'd prefer to pay more and buy American but that's just not the way we do things any more. Shame WalMart doesn't pay more to it's staff but the shareholders (and any and all of us who have a 401k or a Investment Fund probably have some WalMart tucked away in there somewhere) don't really care about the little guy.
The WalMart Supercenters I've seen in Florida are really quite nice. Don't be put off by the one in Oxnard (which really isn't very nice at all).
Hope that Green Thumb isn't put out of business by this tho.
Keep the retail in mid-town and leave my East End alone !!
Whoa yeah !!
Count me among those who are happy to see Wal-Mart proceeding with its plans to occupy the vacant K-Mart building. I made no secret of my position on Wal-Mart being a welcome addition to our community during my campaign last year for City Council.
I think it's a perfect fit for that site and would provide significant ongoing sales tax revenue to the City to support such needed services as public safety for the City. It would very unfortunate if that building were to sit vacant for a number of years because of political pressure from special interests to not allow a Wal-Mart into the City.
With a more welcoming attitude towards retail development, the City would be in much better shape financially to help stave off the budget woes that are looming on the horizon. I agree with Katie's comment that the CAUSE organization is just a front for pro-union special interest groups that have attempted to mask their efforts behind an alleged "community grass roots" effort. They are playing politics in our community, pure and simple, and in so doing, putting our economic future at risk.
This is about the good sense and planning our City must do to accommodate any Big Box store and not just a Wal-Mart. It is about livible small cities where traffic and circulation are key to the livability of our small town. It is about encouraging business that fits a business model we want to see prospering locally. If Wal-Mart can meet a careful planned design the City has put forth about size they are welcome to come to the Victoria Ave.location. This is what local people want.
And it is true many people find Wal-Mart to be a model of business that is deeply unethical. Speaking to local people we find that they feel strongly about this.
Locals feel Wal-Mart exemplifies much of what is terribly wrong with multi-national corporate business. They know that Wal-Mart has a long record of abuses that are documented and clear. They know they don't pay decent livable wages to their employees and that they depend on the subsidies given to needy families to augment their worker's income. This is corporate welfare straight out. Of course, local Ventura citizens from every walk of life decry this kind of business behavior.
Helen,
On your point regarding Wal-Mart not paying livable wages, let us not forget that this is a retail establishment. Most jobs that are provided at retail stores like this, particularly sales clerk jobs, are not intended as long-term career opportunities. They are meant for students working their way through college, people in transitional employment situations, and people trying to earn a little extra money on the side.
As such, Wal-Mart is not required, nor should it be expected, for that matter, to pay "livable" wages. It is because of this fact that it is able to offer products at discount prices, which people in this community deserve to have available as well, particularly those who cannot afford to shop at higher-priced retailers. It is all about giving people choices and opportunities in their shopping decisions.
It is elitist and, quite frankly, un-American, to think that we can block a certain retailer from a particular community. This flies in the face of everything out free enterprise system stands for.
Where were all of these Stop Walmart/CAUSE people when Target moved into the mall? I don't know the actual figures, but it seems that there is more than 90,000 sq ft of space at the new Target. There also seems to be quite a bit of space on the second floor devoted to "the sale of non-taxable merchandise such as food".
I say bring in Wal-Mart and let them compete for my toilet paper, underwear, and motor oil dollars.
I (and my wife) will still shop at Green Thumb for garden supplies. I'll still shop at Salzer's for my music (better selection) and I'll still buy my milk at Trader Joe's.
Let the consumer decide whether Wal-Mart will work or not. If you don't shop there, they won't survive just like K-Mart, it's called capitalism and something the U.S. is founded on. If you still don't like it, learn from a guy named Sam Walton, and start your own business to compete against Wal-Mart. If Wal-Mart wants to invest in that K-Mart building and improve it along with that parking lot, then I am in favor. Helen, you speak about "locals" not wanting a Wal-Mart; try using the words "select vocal few" instead, it just sounds more accurate. I agree with Phreaddy, to let Wal-Mart compete for where I buy my toilet paper might just allow me to afford to fill up my tank of gas.
Well, I think the City is going to need that Wal-Mart store more than ever after the taxpayer revolt that is developing over the plethora of new fees and charges the City Council is starting to heap on its citizens, for services that were previously paid for through general taxes, such as 911 services and weed abatement inspection.
This is just the start, folks. With a tight budget in the coming year, expect more of these fees to hit the books in the not too distant future. In fact, Carl Morehouse has pledged this.
On second thought, perhaps the Wal-Mart will be a good place for the Mayor and City Council to submit their job applications after the next election.
Well you got your choice folks. Eviscerate city services or raise a few fees. Either way, somebody's mad. Welcome to the Bush-induced recession. It's easy to be popular when times are good. Making the tough choices hurts.
But I for one welcome Walmart.
Mongo, did you know our Republican governor is proposing a 1.25 percent surcharge on property insurance policies which is expected to raise $125 million to fund a larger state fire fighting unit? This will be levied on all property owners, not just those whose homes abut fire-prone areas.
Yes, Marie, I know about that proposal and I disagree with it. As I've stated many times before, a bad economy is the worst time to raise taxes, no matter how well disguised they are.
The City of Ventura is on the wrong track with regard to increasing taxes and fees, especially now, and the public is going to revolt in the next election - mark my words!
You are not much of a student of history. Republican Governor Pete Wilson, faced with a crushing state deficit, raised taxes in the middle of a recession. And everyone survived.
I have always advocated for both cuts combined with additional revenue generating measures. This city is still below average in its collection of fees in comparison to other cites in the area.
In the words of George Santayana, "Those who cannot not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."
One could easily argue that what Wilson did at the time exacerbated, rather than resolved, the economic crisis California was facing at the time. He was obviously not one of my favorite governors either.
The Ventura City Council should take a cue from Pete Wilson, Gray Davis, and George H.W. Bush. Raising taxes during a slumping economy came back to haunt each one of these guys at election time. So it will with the City Council.
Wilson didn't lose; he was termed out. G HW Bush was replaced by a Democrat. Davis' Republican successor is faring no better and has added enormously to the state's financial problems by putting past deficits on the state credit card and slashing the car tax.
Reagan raised taxes, too. I know he's your hero. He approved a $1-billion tax increase on a $6-billion annual budget, which was, proportionately, the biggest tax increase in state history.
And he still managed to keep getting elected.
Well, for all intents and purposes, Wilson would never have gotten reelected even if he had been eligible to run again. At the end of his last term, he was highly unpopular, pulling similar numbers as Bush is now.
George, Sr. was beaten by a relatively unknown governor of Arkansas, a third world state. Do you recall - "It's the economy, stupid" and "Read my lips, no new taxes." His tax increases definitely did him in that election.
Davis was recalled in 2003 (the first governor ever) because he was, essentially, mismanaging the State and its budget. He definitely paid the price for tripling the vehicle license fee, for one thing.
You're absolutely right. Reagan did raise taxes. I think the public was a little more naive and trusting in government back then though and I think they actually were able to see some measurable benefit from the taxes they paid. Today, things get lost in a haze of bureaucracy and duplicative efforts that the public, quite frankly, is getting sick and tired of.
Quick, time to blame the Clintons for something again Mongo, you're losing an argument!
Jeez, Skip on Down the Road, why does it feel like you're stalking my conversation with Marie?
No, you're wrong yet again, I'm afraid. You call it losing an argument. I call it having the cajones to admit when someone else has some decent points. You, my friend, unfortunately lack that same depth of character.
Why don't you go back to stalking...
Davis got recalled, in part, because of the energy crisis. This was caused by the deregulation efforts that he inherited. Companies like Enron took advantage of us. When Enron went down, I believe Davis was largely vindicated.
I think some of the excess during the tech stock boom should have gone to a rainy day account and not spent in new programs and tax credits, though.
Marie, I disagree with your account of history regarding the energy deregulation fiasco. As I recall, Governor Davis signed the contracts with the electricity providers that enabled them to charge whatever they darn well pleased for electricity. The prelude to this was deregulation, but he could have negotiated better agreements with these companies, so he does share some responsibility here.
One thing Governor Scwartznegger has done right in this budget process is require a "rainy day fund" to deal with precisely what you are talking about here - having some reserves to fall back on when revenues drop, like they're doing now, and help smooth out other peaks and valleys in the State's economy.
The deregulation allowed energy companies like Enron to manipulate the market. Some people blame Davis for signing overpriced contracts; other say he made the best of a bad situation.
I agree that we need stability in the state budget so our schools have some predictability from year to year.