That's what a few dozen folks did yesterday outside the International Council of Shopping Centers meeting here in Blacksburg. Fairmount Properties, the Cleveland-based developer of the South Main project currently slated to begin here in late summer 2007, was in attendance and held a press conference after the luncheon saying that the project couldn't move forward with a big-box anchor tenant and that other retailers were watching.
I've been following this project pretty closely since it was publicly announced quite some time ago, and I have never once heard with any certainty that the anchor tenant Fairmount has targeted for the site is Wal-Mart, but there are hundreds within the Town that seem to think otherwise. Petitions have been signed, websites and blogs denouncing the retailer have been created, and emails announcing the protest have been circulated. Good Lord, enough already! Here's the point …
As I've said before, there are certain things that make Blacksburg unique and I'm not certain that a store like Wal-Mart is one of them but I AM FOR THIS DEVELOPMENT. But I don't know that it's a Wal-Mart – could it be a K-Mart, a Kohl's, a Target? Who knows, at this point EVERYTHING out there is just conjecture. In the summer Town Council approved rezoning of the South Main site and now they've switched their opinion and seem to be trying to change the rules once again on the developer. If I'm Fairmount I'm going to be pissed … I've made promises to tenants based on what the Town approved in regards to the zoning, and now it's being challenged and threatened to be changed?
FULL DISCLOSURE – I don't know this developer. I don't know anything specific about what's going into the site other than what I've already posted. There, that's out of the way. So tell me – why is this such a big deal? Increased revenue for a municipal government that needs the estimated $1,000,000 in tax revenue a retail development like this could bring? While they're low compared to national averages, our property taxes aren't going to get any cheaper, folks, and the burden of another tax increase like we just saw could be partially borne by solid retail development involving a mix of tenants who are committed to staying, not mom and pop stores that are going to struggle every day to survive. I love the mom and pop stores – Natalie and I try to buy our books from local stores, we purchase milk from Homestead Creamery (try their Egg Nog!) and we support the Buy Local campaign. But the truth of the matter is that our dollars need to stay in Blacksburg, rather than being spent in and supporting Christiansburg. Nothing against Christiansburg, but I'd prefer to support retailers and restaurateurs in the community I live in. Right now, I buy gas, groceries and Diet Pepsi in Blacksburg.
I really hope some of the readers here will offer some insightful commentary on their thoughts – this is one of the most contentious issues to hit Blacksburg in quite some time and I know there's some thoughtful commentary out there. We all look forward to reading it …
Thanks guys – great comments. You’re right, Philip, GGW might just have trumped Ordinance 1450 at least for the next several days.
Thanks guys – great comments. You’re right, Philip, GGW might just have trumped Ordinance 1450 at least for the next several days.
Don’t forget MishMish, too. Steve’s done a bang-up job of surviving Michaels… despite Downtown’s meltdown. At least there’s a strong Merchants group, too. That helps.
I agree with Ryan… c’burg is a wreck. Blacksburg should take note and tour the major developments north and west of the Cambria St. Heck, just sit in traffic before and after the business hours at the intersection of Cambria and No. Franklin, and also along 114. A perfect example of poor urban planning and “unchecked” residential development. 🙂
Don’t forget MishMish, too. Steve’s done a bang-up job of surviving Michaels… despite Downtown’s meltdown. At least there’s a strong Merchants group, too. That helps.
I agree with Ryan… c’burg is a wreck. Blacksburg should take note and tour the major developments north and west of the Cambria St. Heck, just sit in traffic before and after the business hours at the intersection of Cambria and No. Franklin, and also along 114. A perfect example of poor urban planning and “unchecked” residential development. 🙂
I’m hoping for a Super Target, or even just a Target. I’ve avoided Walmart for years, largely based on how they treat their suppliers and have driven jobs overseas.
To put town opinion in perspective, there are two very active online petitions at the moment, the first is to support ordinance 1450 (the anti Walmart ordinance) the second opposes Girls Gone Wild at Oge Chi’s.
The 1450 petition has 2217 sigantures and the anti GGW petition has 2602 signatures (as of noon Saturday)
URLS:
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/ordinance1450
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/ggw-bburg
So what do we conclude? Not too much, but we can that more people dislike GGW than Walmart, at least on a sample of the internet users in the Blacksburg area.
I’m hoping for a Super Target, or even just a Target. I’ve avoided Walmart for years, largely based on how they treat their suppliers and have driven jobs overseas.
To put town opinion in perspective, there are two very active online petitions at the moment, the first is to support ordinance 1450 (the anti Walmart ordinance) the second opposes Girls Gone Wild at Oge Chi’s.
The 1450 petition has 2217 sigantures and the anti GGW petition has 2602 signatures (as of noon Saturday)
URLS:
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/ordinance1450
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/ggw-bburg
So what do we conclude? Not too much, but we can that more people dislike GGW than Walmart, at least on a sample of the internet users in the Blacksburg area.
Great points Ryan – thanks for jumping in! Have a safe trip this weekend, enjoy the reunion (Ryan’s brother is returning from a tour of duty in Afghanistan).
Great points Ryan – thanks for jumping in! Have a safe trip this weekend, enjoy the reunion (Ryan’s brother is returning from a tour of duty in Afghanistan).
I hate walmart. On a variety of levels; from the way they clean their stores and stock their merchandise, to the manner they treat their employees, to the way management uses underhanded techniques to build stores, even to the culture of disposable consumerism it encourages.
But here’s the deal. Blacksburg’s retail is dead. Deader than a doornail. Look downtown, we just lost another major main street anchor, Blue Ridge Outdoors. We’ve got more to fear from chain restaurants than we do from WalMart at this point. The Christiansburg WalMart (helped along by Target and all the other stores in that intersection) has already done its damage. What will we lose now? Worst case, Kroger. Wades in a heartbeat, but they’re already dead. We don’t have much else it can kill. The bird shop? Tech Bookstore? I don’t think so. Maybe Heaveners would be impacted. But they survived Home Depot and Lowes by adapting.
I saw a poster map on the wall of Macados showing all the businesses in Blacksburg circa 1985. This town was loaded. Did you know we even had a Grand Home furnishings downtown? If that was todays situation, I would be afraid. But the damage is done, and we need this development. We shouldn’t scare it off on speculation. Christiansburg has not planned one inch of their commercialization, and its a horrible traffic nightmare. Blacksburg can do it right, if they don’t kill it first.
On a side note, the developers have changed part of the proposal pretty radically from residential to commercial (where people are suspecting the WalMart will go). Since that wasn’t in the initial plan, they shouldn’t be “pissed” if it gets rejected. Any tenants should be aware they are working on a speculative aspect of the project.
I hate walmart. On a variety of levels; from the way they clean their stores and stock their merchandise, to the manner they treat their employees, to the way management uses underhanded techniques to build stores, even to the culture of disposable consumerism it encourages.
But here’s the deal. Blacksburg’s retail is dead. Deader than a doornail. Look downtown, we just lost another major main street anchor, Blue Ridge Outdoors. We’ve got more to fear from chain restaurants than we do from WalMart at this point. The Christiansburg WalMart (helped along by Target and all the other stores in that intersection) has already done its damage. What will we lose now? Worst case, Kroger. Wades in a heartbeat, but they’re already dead. We don’t have much else it can kill. The bird shop? Tech Bookstore? I don’t think so. Maybe Heaveners would be impacted. But they survived Home Depot and Lowes by adapting.
I saw a poster map on the wall of Macados showing all the businesses in Blacksburg circa 1985. This town was loaded. Did you know we even had a Grand Home furnishings downtown? If that was todays situation, I would be afraid. But the damage is done, and we need this development. We shouldn’t scare it off on speculation. Christiansburg has not planned one inch of their commercialization, and its a horrible traffic nightmare. Blacksburg can do it right, if they don’t kill it first.
On a side note, the developers have changed part of the proposal pretty radically from residential to commercial (where people are suspecting the WalMart will go). Since that wasn’t in the initial plan, they shouldn’t be “pissed” if it gets rejected. Any tenants should be aware they are working on a speculative aspect of the project.