THE STOP WAL-MART VENTURA COALITION has earned a place on the fall 2009 ballot for its anti-big box initiative and may have even collected enough signatures to trigger a special election at the beginning of next year.
A random sample of the almost 13,000 signatures submitted to the County Elections Division showed an estimated 9,000 of the signatures could be valid; 8,900 signatures are needed for a special election, something organizers were hoping to avoid. Elections workers will now need to go through each petition by hand for an exact count to determine when the measure will ultimately go to voters.
Coalition organizer and Santa Barbara City Councilman Das Williams said he doubts a special election will be triggered.
"We do not believe that much more than two thirds are valid," Williams said. "It was a tough decision as to when we stopped gathering signatures. If we had turned in fewer, we would have risked not qualifying. We felt better erring on the side of more. The advantage of having 15 percent and a special election would be to have this law on the books before Wal-Mart can move in, but the disadvantage is the possible cost to the city. That's why we stopped the effort early, because we would rather save the city taxpayers some money."
A special election could potentially cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars extra.
IRONICALLY THE GROUP which was hoping to trigger a special election for its own measure, the Ventura Citizens' Organization for Responsible Development (VCORD), was unable to produce enough signatures to do so. The view-protection initiative will go to the voters in the fall of 2009, even though the city is currently working toward the same goals through its own view protection task force. The members of that group will be ratified on Sept. 8 and should produce guidelines for the Council to vote on as early as next spring, well before VCORD's measure can be voted on, rendering it essentially moot.
I've always thought the Stop Wal-Mart Ventura Coalition's efforts were somewhat moot, too. Our own General Plan and upcoming Victoria Corridor Plan forbid big-box development at the old K-Mart site, anyway. What the initiative will do is keep a Wal-Mart Supercenter from popping up in another area where zoning would allow that sort of development, such as near our Auto Center. Wal-Mart likely does not want to be there. They'll either walk away or take over the existing 90,000-square-foot K-Mart space, something the initiative can't prevent. But that will be largely due to our city's own citizen-generated General Plan.
I'm not a particular fan of initiatives. Bad laws are often made when special interests take over the public policy process. It could also be argued that special interests influence some of our legislators too much through campaign donations. However, this has not traditionally been the case in Ventura municipal elections which are often run on shoestring budgets.
But it is safe to say that many initiatives are generated by those who feel powerless to influence public policy any other way and are particularly devoted to a cause.
"12,875 signatures is something that we are very proud of, since it indicates the level of enmity Venturans have against Wal-Mart," Williams said.
Generally sympathetic here. Won't be if we have to spend thousands extra for a special election.
Looks like the unions won this one - unfortunately.
Steve Lopez with the LA Times is doing a wonderful column on the corruption of the SEIU union bosses - read it today and see what the future is for union members in Ventura County.
This is not a victory.
Small minded zoning at the ballot box individuals falling for the scam always put forth by the retail clerks Union. How sad tht the Union's pro-Democracy stand only goes so far. When it comes to Walmart, damn free enterprise to protect the inflated salaries of the mindless computer drones scanning the canned beans at the check-out. SEIU illegally sends millions to the bossman's family members and hard working families pay more at the Union's markets. What a great theory upon which to advance a society.
Marie, go into a Walmart one day. You can do it. Be strong. When the fellow at the door says "Welcome to Walmart", just say hello and move along. You don't have to buy anything. Just run in and then run out. Once home, you can say "I did it". You will feel good about yourself. You will have faced the monster and survived. You will be a stronger person for it
If this thing qualifies for a special election, there will be a huge backlash against the anti-WalMart group, since it's going to cost the cash-strapped City of Ventura an additional $400,000 that it doesn't have.
I hope it qualifies.
I wouldn't wish an additional unnecessary $400,000 expense on the city as a vendetta against the anti-Wal-Mart folks.
CAP, I've been in plenty of Wal-Marts and haven't bought much.
I've had both sides sending me nastygrams over this issue so maybe I'm somewhere in the middle. I don't think the K-Mart center is the right place for a big box; it can go elsewhere but I likely won't shop there. It's my choice.
Let's let the voters decide but hopefully not in a special election.
Of course it is your choice to shop in a Walmart, Marie. I was just trying to offer a psychological boosting suggestion that may help you to face the monster. You will be a stronger person for it.
"I don't think the K-Mart center is the right place for a big box"
And yet Ralph's built a big box on Victoria (right across the street), leaving an perfectly good, functional EMPTY store in it's wake.
Then people were up in arms because 99cent store was moving in. God forbid!
K-Mart is a big box. Long's and Ralph's and 24 hour Fitness are all big boxes. Why not on Victoria.
Everyone complains about the traffic. I work in the area and ride a two wheeled vehicle. I don't see a problem with traffic.
What is sad is that the Anti Wal-Mart folks seem to think that what they are doing is good for Ventura. Maybe if they took off the blinders they would see what will happen when other retailers stay away as well.
Hmmm Why is a Council man from Santa Barbara running a campaign against Walmart in Ventura?
"Coalition organizer and Santa Barbara City Councilman Das Williams "
Does he live in Ventura County? I am missing something here..???
Please please put a Walmart somewhere in Ventura so dont have to go to Oxnard ,EVer
All other Walmart are nice and clean. Only Oxnard is icky.
John Doe, we need to follow the guidelines of our General Plan, which was written after years of citizen input.
The 2005 General Plan clearly calls for "eliminating 'big box,' mega block auto-oriented strip development and the traffic patterns it generates" in the Victoria Corridor.
So nothing over 100,000 square feet can go in there. A Supercenter won't fit into those guidelines and won't get approved without an amendment to the General Plan. That won't happen. Wal-Mart can come into the 90,000-sq.-ft. K-Mart building, not take over the adjacent empty stores and there is nothing the city or the initiative can do to stop that.
The city can hardly afford a special election. Maybe some of those gnomes who Camille Harris said stole her ballots can come over and steal Stop Wal-mart's ballots too.
CAP, I know you don't value the work that most grocery store workers do and you think they are overpaid.
But do you think they deserve health care or is that set aside for wealthier people with better jobs. There will always be people with low paying jobs. Do they deserve to be able to visit a doctor?
I'm starting a peptition to get Big Box government out of the city,county and state....Big Box Government's products are overpriced, defective and they pay zero property taxes on all the land and buildings they have gobbled up....
First of all, health care is not a "right" under the Constitution. Right now it is an ungodly expense that many working people pay for - I haven't had a real vacation in years because I make fiscally conservative choices. I have two kids in college, a house, etc. I also pay cash for some of the doctor's visits.
Second of all, grocery store workers is/was an entry level job - not a career choice. It used to be for high school kids but now they can't afford the union dues - ask my son. He used to work at Von's. We were just in there and he couldn't believe that some people were still there.
Visiting a doctor is not dependent upon having free health care provided.
The doctor shortage is artifically induced - open it up to free market demands and much of the problem will go away.
The City can always amend its General Plan to remove these artificial barriers to bringing new businesses to town that we desperately need. There is nothing sacred about it. Other cities do this all the time.
This City Council is famous for pandering to a few loud-mouthed activists (like the Stop Wal-Mart Coalition). Enough is enough! Let the people decide with their shopping dollars and not some outdated document that conveniently shields the City Council from making tough decisions. And send Das Williams packing back to Santa Barbara. We are Ventura, not Santa Barbara!
I am so with you on this Marie. I wonder what Mickey Jones would say to another Wal Mart in Ventura County.
I know that this thread has mostly to do with the Wal-Mart issue in Ventura.
For the record, I don't want a Wal-Mart in Ventura, I won't ever shop there, and I think there are better uses for that property, especially when you consider some of the loftier goals of the current City council and the "New Urbanist" agenda...
But, my post is to Katie Teague, whose posts and whose candor I have enjoyed.
Katie: I am a very proud SEIU member, though I am not blind to the conflicts that organization poses with my personal beliefs. Let's be clear. The current issues surrounding Tyrone Freeman and the ULTCW are not consistent with SEIU or other Union operations.
In point of fact, SEIU has moved, and rather swiftly, to deal with the issues as regards Mr. Freeman. He has been removed from authority, and is under internal scrutiny. Republicans should deal with Senator Ted Stevens as certainly.
Mr Freeman is not what Ventura County union or SEIU members necessarily have to contend with as a future, you unfairly castigate others with Mr Freeman's issues. Our organizations are very much about what we make them be, "bad apples" aside.
Your remarks are as unfair as if I were to lump you in with the Ventura County Republicans with whom you apparently have differences with.
Beyond all that, while the movement against Wal-Mart has, yes, a lot of Union involvement, this movement goes beyond that of Unions and into the community as a whole. A lot of folks have issues, rightly or wrongly, with this corporation and it's tactics and impact on communities.
Now Katie...as to grocery workers and "Health Care".
No..Health care is not specifically enumerated in the Constitution, but the preamble to the Constitution states that it wishes to, amongst other things, to "insure...domestic Tranquility...promote the General Welfare".
Hmmm..I think Healthcare, though not a 17th Century concept can be shoe-horned in there.
Whether some folks stay in the grocery business as workers or not isn't the point, regardless of what your son did or what you think of it's long term career prospects. Some do go there at points in their lives and commit to it in the long term. Their employers made committments to them in turn, and they will be held accountable for those committments.
Their work is not without dignity. It is not beneath respect. They are our neighbors, and friends. Your comments come across as elitist, but perhaps that is the Republican in you coming out.
Finally the "doctor shortage" may be artificially induced, but I'm not sure how opening it to "market demands" will change that. Many of the constraints on physician training are not market driven, they are instead often driven by professional organizations and issues beyond the "market" such as governmental regulations and the litigious environment we now live in.
In any event, the gap between a need in the "market" and the production of a new physician can be a decade or more....hardly market driven IMHO.
There will always be low wage jobs done by people with few marketable skills.
Do these people not deserve health care?
Are you honestly admitting our system is rigged to make sure some people live in poverty and don't have health care?
Thanks for sticking up for working folks, Tom. I always appreciate your thoughtful insight here.
To our blogger above who seems to be so misinformed about the genesis of our 2005 General Plan, here's how this citizen-generated document was drafted:
Following adoption of the Ventura Vision, the City Council established a 19-member Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee (CPAC) to shape the Vision concepts into issues and priorities for revision of the 1989 Comprehensive Plan.
The CPAC included representatives of varied interests, including neighborhoods, agriculture, seniors and schools, as well as one member from the Planning Commission and one from the City Council. The committee met more than 30 times over almost three years.
Tom, I have also enjoyed your posts because they are thoughtul and cogent - not that I agree with you most of the time.
I know you are a union member and most of the No on Wal-Mart organizers are union building organizations - some are even outside the county. As a Republican I have a problem with this.
I personally don't shop at Wal-Mart but as my DTS registered son says - what about the low prices and the jobs - don't enonimcally challenged people deserve this? Stopping Wal-Mart is very elitist.
As far as free healthcare - we spend about $600 a month for healthcare insurance. Part of the problem is that the insurance market is protected. Open it up and then we can talk.
As far as the artificial shortage of doctors - this is a fact. There is a plethora of people that want to be doctors but there are a limited number of schools. About 50% of qualified people are turned away. Build more schools is obvious but existing doctors say no - their income would be reduced. This has been going on for years and is one of the AMA dirty little secrets - along with dissing chiropractic care, forbidding physchologists from dispensing drugs, opening up the pharmeceutical market to phamacists, etc.
Marie,
Your argument on the General Plan has nothing to do with my comments. You claim that it was developed by a completely open process, whereby citizens from throughout the City had opportunity to provide input, etc. But, the reality is that most of the folks who were involved in developing it were those plugged into the political process in some way.
It provides a convenient shield for the City Council to hide behind and say, "Look, the General Plan says we have to do it this way." The fact remains that the General Plan is only a document that provides broad guidelines on how development should occur in the City and can be amended any time the political will is there to do it, which, in this case, it obviously isn't.
It was a very public process; but since you didn't live here at the time you have no way of knowing that, Mongo, or General Plan or whatever you are choosing to call yourself today.
I believe if I were on the City Council or Planning Commission I would take the guidelines spelled out through our General Plan very seriously.
Let's just let the citizens vote on both the anti-big box initiative and the VCORD initiative. I will accept what they have to say. Of course, if the vote doesn't turn out your way, you will protest and say voter turnout was low and doesn't really represent what the majority of folks here think. Let's just do it all your way instead. You know best after only having lived here a few years.
I challenge more people to become involved in their communities. Watch City Council meetings, go to city workshops, join a Community Council, read the newspaper! Apply to be on a city commission. VOTE!
If you don't make an effort to take part in the process of defining your city, you can't complain when others do.
So, now you're into mind-reading, eh, Marie? You think that I will protest a decision made by the citizens of this community. Well, you obviously don't know me very well to make that kind of a reactionary statement. Stick to the facts and leave the emotive responses to VCORD and the anti-WalMart coalition.
I stand firmly by my previous argument. The General Plan is a set of "guidelines" for development, correct? The City Council has the ability to amend the General Plan to take into account such changes in the City as the economic environment, right? Allowing for construction of a Wal-Mart super center on Victoria Avenue would improve the local tax base, correct? The City Council won't do this because of the perceived political consequences, right?
I rest my case!
RE: The General Plan and the Unions.
Where were the unions when Target decided to open a 220,000 sq ft store at the mall with groceries?
Where were the NIMBYs when Target decided to open a 220,000 sq ft store at the mall?
It is so transparent that none of the Anti Wal-Mart groups/folks care what happens in this city as long as Wal-Mart is kept out.
They are all snobbish, eliteist, short sighted, and in for a rude awakeing when the ballots are counted. I'm sort of hoping for the $400,000 special election. It would be very entertaining to see them explain why the cash strapped city is being forced to pay money (that the city can't afford) to settle this squabble.
Maybe the city could bill all of the various Anti Wal-Mart groups.....
Why not GP, Mongo, et al? You were questioning the outcome of a very well-vetted and public process before.
Is it possible for you to wait for the outcome of the Wal-Mart vote? Will you accept it? If the majority of citizens vote in favor of keeping a Supercenter out, do you still think that the General Plan should be amended?
Before the anti-Wal-Mart folks started this process, they did scientific polling. Almost 2/3 of the respondents said they didn't want Wal-Mart. Combine that with the General Plan's guidelines and I don't see direction from the citizens to amend the General Plan.
Yeah, like the City Council really cares about what the majority of its citizens want it to do? Since when? I noticed they did a poll before they implemented the extremely unpopular 911 tax.
They could do what's good for the community for a change and not feel enslaved to the "New Urbanism" fraud being propogated by Cole, Fulton, and Morehouse. But they won't, will they? There's too much at stake here - their stubborn pride.
The 911 polling done by the city indicated that the majority of our citizens were willing to pay the 911 fee. And most decided not to opt out.
I didn't opt out because I knew it went to School Resource Officers at our schools and the police team that is deployed around the city to trouble areas. (But now we are off topic)
The infill strategy is also a part of our General Plan.
Wal-Mart can come into the existing space without any trouble from anyone. Adding a big grocery section via a Supercenter will not give us any more tax revenues. Food is exempt from sales taxes.
Dream on Marie. Walmart Supercenters bring people in for their groceries and they get into a pattern of shopping at Walmart. While getting groceries they pick up other taxable items. Per square foot sales are greater at supercenters overall than at conventional stores. The only one who loses when a supercenter comes to town is the over priced grocery store and its highly compensated union check out clerks. Now toughen up, point that chin high, and go into a Walmart. You will be glad you faced the demon head on.
By the way, my friend Moondoggie said you are kool. So far, I'm just taking his word for it.
I like Moondoggie, too. Tell him hi.
You are growing on me.
But no thanks on Wal-mart. I'm a Target gal.
What you gonna do when they vote your place of business out of town??
RE: taxable items
...why should I pay taxes when I buy anything....?? When I buy something, I don't want the government getting a piece of it...!
Ah, shucks, you do have a kind side. I knew it.
Speaking of which, I've found Hannah-Beth Jackson to have a very kind side as well. I recently met her at a small gathering in Simi Valley. She talked for more than an hour without a breath about how she will fix the State's fiscal mess. She has a lot of refreshing ideas that actually made sense. I mention this because she doesn't seem to be much of a Walmart fan. I'll try to get her shopping at Walmart the next time we meet. It will have enhancing phychological benefit to both of you. After all, can't we all improve a bit?
It is always a sad day when governments can select any single entity and essentially ban them from a free market.
There are always those in small town politics who have heads the size of watermelons who think their little realm of influence gives them the power to throw away everything America has stood for and go after a private entity in this way.
Shame on you Ventura!
I am curious about the role of a Santa Barbara councl member in a Ventura initiative too. Is Williams worried that Santa Barbara is next on Walmarts list?
Also, as to the blogger that stated only Oxnard Walmart is poorly maintained, I heartily disagree. On a cross country trip a few years ago I found myself in need of supplies at several points along I80, where Walmart was practically the only option. I went into stores in Nebraska, Wyoming and possibly in Idaho, that were all terribly maintained with dirty parking lots and chaotic stores in total disarray. As a result of that experience and one or two visits to the store Oxnard, I no longer go to any Walmart stores. Shopping, even at a bargain price should be a pleasurable experience and there is no justification for any store management to let things look as they do at the Oxnard Walmart or the ones i visited out of state. I hate to see our City undertake the expense of a special election, but I am all for keeping that ugly mess out of our city.
Santa Barbara City Councilman, Das Williams, is just looking to expand his resume by pointing to the fact that his organization, C.A.U.S.E., was able to prevent a Wal-Mart from coming to Ventura. It should be up to the community not charlatans, like Das Williams, to decide this.
Zenith Marketing did nearly half a million price checks in 300 Wal-Mart, Target, Kmart, and national chain grocery and drug stores to find out who really has lower prices.
The findings:
- 85% of Wal-Mart's prices are higher than its competitors as a group;
- Wal-Mart's main success-driver is that consumers perceive its prices are lower, which they are not;
- Consumers perceive that Wal-Mart's prices are lower because of a complex set of perception-altering mechanisms;
- Wal-Mart's core competence is not logistics or low prices; it is perception-alteration: public relations.
Low Prices,
Interesting statistics, but that's all they are, statistics. The fact remains that Wal-Mart is the Number One discount retailer in the nation because of its low prices (perceived, or otherwise) and/or the quality of its products for the prices it offers.
That makes it a highly desirable company to have in any town because it will be an automatic success. That translates to high volume sales, increased sales tax revenues to the community, which means more local funding for vital services - police & fire, among others.
That makes it a winner in my book!
So if the Wal-Mart drives one of the two Targets out of business (it will) and we have an empty shell in another part of the city this is OK with you? At least Target offers its employees health care. What will we gain as a city? Why not a type of business in the K-mart building which we don't have here now?
Trust me, Wal-Mart will not drive one of the two Target stores in Ventura out of business. If that logic held true, then Wal-Mart opening in Oxnard would have driven out its Target store (which it didn't) and Sam's Club in Oxnard would have driven out its Costco (which it didn't). These are just scare tactics employed by Santa Barbara's Das Williams and his band of elitists to prevent the free market from operating as intended.
Instead, the presence of these two stores have resulted in drawing more patrons to the Shopping at the Rose Center, which has thrived beyond expectations because of Wal-Mart and Sam's Club serving as anchors.
What we can gain as a City, which I stated before, is about $400,000 a year (conservative estimate) in additional sales tax revenue, which could pay for additional police officers and firefighters for the City.
So you believe in a town as small as ours that two Targets that close to one another will thrive with a Wal-Mart in town? I don't.
I don't think Williams is an elitist, either. He works as a legislative analyst for a group which specializes in helping workers, especially those who don't have much. They also work on women's issues. Nothing wrong with that. I see that elitist term thrown around alot and it's usually tossed out at people who are just well educated. Again, nothing wrong with that.
I certainly do believe that 2 Targets can survive and do quite well in Ventura. Do you not think that Target considered the strong possibility that Wal-Mart might be coming to town before it opened the second store at the mall? I can assure you, they did. Target will do just fine.
My use of the term "elitist" was in reference to people in this town who think they know what's best for the rest of us. These are people (educated or not) who feel they have their little slice of heaven and don't want anyone else to have a chance at it, or, worse yet, that Wal-Mart attracts an element that "we don't want" in Ventura.
Why does EVERYONE skip over the point here? The POINT here, people, is that someone - in this case, Das Williams (a non-native, politico) - has a hair up his butt, thinking that it's HIS job to tell people how to run their business. So, in this case, the "business" he is referring to is WalMart, one of the world's largest conglomerates in retail sales. Target, Ralph's, Von's - they all fit the description of what he and his pack say we shouldn't want in our backyard. But what is that? Is it a big box store? No. We already have those. Is it a large store, perhaps - godforbid - a NATIONAL CHAIN (shudder) that sells food AND other things? Ohmygawd we HAVE those now. Target sells food, Vons sells lawnchairs, Ralph's sells beach paraphernalia. Is it the size? Why, that doesn't make any sense, since we ALREADY HAVE STORES AT OR NEAR THE SIZE THEY ARE WHINING ABOUT DOING JUST FINE AND TAKING OUR MONEY WHICH WE GUH-LADLY GIVE THEM. No, Mr Williams (just like the wackjobs over at VCORD) are trying desperately to come up with some variation on NIMBY-ism that they try so hard to make it something it's not. But it is. Come on, WalMart - open up a 99,999 sq.ft. store, RIGHT THERE ON VICTORIA, follow every rule set up by the City Council and restrict your sales floor to leave out the specific items the whiners are complaining.
And then watch what happens. We all know it has NOTHING to do with the complaints set up by Das and his cult following: it's all about not wanting them in your backyard. And that, my friends, is a whopping lawsuit against the City. Not Das Williams, not VCORD, the City. And guess who will pay?
Katie,
1st...thank you for your kind remarks..sorry, got back to this late, but been bizzy!
Yes, some of the anti-Walmart group is from out of County. Frankly, these days most major issues seem to involve "out of county" folks, and I'd agree...not a good thing. The entire Initiative process in California has problems with non-local influence. Don't have answers, but it is more that about folks that don't like Wal-Mart.
As far as the "low prices" at Wal-Mart are concerned, I'd agree, some people surely benefit by them (I'll take it on faith that they are low, since I don't shop there). The counter-point would be that part of the cost of those low prices comes at a cost to others. Minimal compensation jobs, minimal benefits, unfair competition with smaller vendors. I won't postulate where the balance point is, but it's not just about "low prices".
There is no doubt Health Care costs spiral up endlessly, there are many reasons, but I'm not sure it's so much about "opening up", it should be more about "blowing it up". But I do think there should be more constructive talk before anything is opened or blown up. I think we'll all have to shift on this one, work out of the boxes we are all in currently.
I think we are very close on the doctor shortage issue. Extend that to the other allied health professions too while we're at it. There are lots of smart people out there that need re-training from the industrial to service economy...and Health Care is huge in the "service sector".
Katie...a pleasure to chat with you!
I wish all those that are so anti-Wal-Mart could also say they have been in one of the newer "Super Centers". But, I would bet most have not. Nothing like the Oxnard Wal-Mart, and I would bet allot of the negativity surrounding a Ventura Wal-Mart, comes from opinions based on people's experiences there. I have been to many throughout California, and across the country. The quality, service, selection, and attitude out-weigh any Vons store in town, I have been in here in Ventura in the last 35 years. My choices there, in all categories, far exceeding my choices at any other grocery store in town.
Have you ever seen USDA Grade “Choice" beef at Vons? You will at Wal-Mart, at a price that is less than the Grade "Select" beef at Vons, which they have spent millions promoting as something that exceeds the government’s inspection standards, this coming from a butcher at Vons, when I inquired as to why I was having so much trouble getting someone to just tell me the grade, as anyone selling commercial beef in this country is required to sell government inspected beef, and there are quality rating, so a better quality, sometimes more expensive, is recognized All other grocery stores I have experienced, do, other than Vons. You might want to ask your butcher at Vons’s why they do not display it. What you have in Oxnard is what you will get in Ventura, if the restrictions keep the store, "as is". The store is not what the new Wal-Mart stores look like now, not something I would imagine Wal-Mart is putting much attention to anymore, and very proud of. They eliminate them wherever they can be replaced with a new Super Store, but would never close one, that cannot be replaced in a given area, as long as they are profitable. The case in Oxnard is, that Sam’s Club, a full grocery center, shares the parking lot in the same center with the unattractive Wal-Mart. Remember, Wal-Mart owns Sam’s Club, in case anyone has forgotten. I think it is very unfair for anyone to vote, either way on this matter, unless you personally have seen one of the newer stores. Remember, they have to do nothing, no actions by the city that can force them not to open the current location. They will. The store will be very busy, and too busy for the old K-Mart location parking lot. Nothing we can do about, as they have already been given the green light, nothing can stop them. We were so used to a struggling K-Mart because we were so delighted at the Trader Joe’s, no one paid any attention to the fact the were going broke with no business. The city says it wants someone to occupy the empty K-Mart store, however it seems what it really wants, by it’s actions, is a store on the brink of bankruptcy, as K-Mart was, thus limiting traffic flow in and out of a already busy parking lot with the store vacant now, the high volume of traffic to the “Expanded� Trader Joe’s�, and other retailers. Trader Joe's would have been gone from their current location years ago, had there already been a busy Wal-Mart. No expansion. Wal-Mart will open the store "as is" if that is all they get, and the area will be the biggest nightmare Ventura has seen to date. Trader Joe's will not tolerate the gridlock for long, and they will be history from that location, guaranteed. Yes, they will have worked out a new location closer to downtown, as they will be welcomed anywhere in town, the city will make exceptions, and certainly be very accommodating after the mistakes already made in previous location plans. The general plan to improve the downtown, now looking sweeter, and where its main focus is, the money machine. The grocery clerks get what they want, and the rest of us lose, as Victoria becomes a further Nightmare to drive on.
Yes, Ventura will proudly announce that it has stopped Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart will announce, for the first time in company history, a city wants had us open one the “old style�, (K-Mart era) stores, rather than insist on a new one. They will open it, as it is very irrlavent to their profile, and move on to more important items, leaving us to wallow in the nightmare on Victoria. Don’t count on them returning our calls in a rush, later on, asking for some help to fix Victoria. They will help, now, the stakes allot higher.
Also remember something about the Grocery Union, and Safeway who is fighting to keep their Monopoly here. The Union is now a “two tiered� membership. And the lower half is bigger in numbers than the upper half. The current starting average wage at Wal-Mart exceeds more than half of the employees of the big-box grocery stores within the union. The other driving force, of course, is Safeway (Vons). My first experience with a petitioner was over a year ago, I believe at a street fair downtown. She had a great location on the corner of Main and California Street. She admitted being paid for her anti-Wal-Mart petitions, however, denied any affiliation with the grocery stores or the grocery union. After some very strong persuasion, I was able to get the name of the "marketing" company she said was paying her. No address, however with some ‘Goggling’. What a coincidence. Their offices were approximately 2 blocks down the street, in Pleasanton, California, from the corporate headquarters of Safeway. But surely coincidental. We allow Vons to monopolize the west side of Ventura, clutching to its Real Estate holdings at the north end of Pacific View Mall for years, knowing zoning in Ventura makes it almost impossible for a competitor to find a location on the west side, or even close. Finally, recently releasing it, only with the strict guarantee from the new owners, that another grocery store similar to Vons (Ralph’s, Albertson’s, etc.) can never exist there. I got this from an employee that works right in the middle of it. Give me a choice in West Ventura, and not having to drive twice a week to Albertson’s across town. The costs before would have probably mostly paid by Wal-Mart, but now they will have to do nothing, the city forced to accommodate the citizens, and you can’t make them pay for being busy at a site you already agreed was suitable for them. This is now our problem.
When voting to kill what you think is Wal-Mart, Wal-Mart will now become the biggest pain in Ventura history, instead of its number one revenue source.
If you think any part, or part of what I say, is not, or cannot be what is going to happen, go find out. I have already talked to so many that are not looking at the big picture, here. Please go find out!!!
To rail against Wal-mart and complain that better cheaper healthcare is unavailable fails to address something that Wal-Mart has been championing in its stores :
1. The sale of over 200 different generic prescription drugs at very low prices ( like $6.00 a prescription )
2. The establishment of outpatient clinics at Wal-Mart locations around the country
These are very good things and Rick Cole should be promoting this instead of catering to his faux-planning element.