Wal-Mart's Calif. Supercenters Delayed

[Conservativesux]

Wal-Mart's Calif. Supercenters Delayed

Sat Mar 19, 2005

By JIM WASSERMAN, Associated Press Writer

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - As Wal-Mart Stores Inc. tries to plant dozens of new supercenters in California, lawyers aligned with a variety of opposition groups are using California's tough environmental laws to stall the nation's largest retailer.

A handful of lawyers have sued more than 30 cities that approved the 200,000-square-foot combination grocery and department stores, claiming local officials hungry for sales taxes have miscalculated their environmental consequences.

In many cases, the suits have been filed on behalf of obscure, often secretive community groups. Some have been backed by labor unions leading an anti-Wal-Mart fight in California, while others have few apparent sources of money.

They're delaying the opening of some stores by months or years and slowing Wal-Mart's plan to build up to 40 new supercenters in a state that's one of the company's few major U.S. growth opportunities. The suits also come at a time when the unions representing grocery store workers, primary the United Food and Commercial Workers, and Wal-Mart's competitors are worried about the effects of the discounters in California.

The suits haven't stopped the company from opening any stores, said Peter Kanelos, a company spokesman. "All they've done is delay the stores."

More at:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=749&e=1&u=/ap/20050319/ap_on_bi_ge/challenging_wal_mart

[yorkiemommie1]

1. Castle & Cooke

one of the 'big five ' corporations that made Hawai'i over it their own image.

[Skink]

2. One of the benefits of Starving the Beast.....

Is that cities have to rely exclusively on sales taxes.