I shop at both the Sentry and Piggly Wiggly stores. I WILL NOT shop at a Walmart Neighborhood Market.

To add a Walmart market to that corner is insane, the traffic is bad enough without adding another store to the bunch, besides if you do, I agree one maybe two stores will close and then the powers to be will complain they have 2 big stores empty and nothing to replace it with, leave well enough alone

I LOVE Piggly on Wash - we moved here for the local community vibe - not for sprawling mega-retailers....

Working nearby, I would NOT want a Wal-Mart at the proposed location. It is not a necessity and not for the good of the "neighborhood" as the name indicates. The added traffic would be a nightmare.

PLEASE NO WALMART!!!!

It looks to me that the comments are on the right track. I live in a rural community within a couple hundred miles of Bentonville, Arkansas. All the small towns here have a Wal-Mart. It's all they have because Wal-Mart ran all the mom and pop stores out. If you let them come YOU WON'T LIKE IT!!!!!

Below is a site with a wealth of information on how Walmart kills local businesses. This one is about Walmart trying to get into New York City. Almost all the info would be relevant to Mt. Pleasant. It just would have a bigger impact here.

Many local stores have, in recent years, spent a lot of money upgrading their stores. They are local gems. There isn't a need for Walmart. It's just that simple.

I, for one, would vote no for Walmart.

Here is that site:

http://www.momandpopnyc.com/campaigns/walmart/index.htm

No Walmart! Not any shape or size. Just say NO to Walmart!

"I live here and work here. I have to look at my family, friends, and neighors and make it right when there's a complaint. Walmart is not invested in the community like that."

Sorry, that's BS. I call it like I see it. Malicki makes it sound like WalMart managers and employees don't live in the community. While I may not necessarily like a WalMart going in that location, I most definitely do not believe the MP trustees should be making a decision to "save" another retail establishment by prohibiting another from building nearby. It's supposed to be a free market economy, but this smacks of complete government interference. Tones of Solyndra being "saved" by the Obama administration ring in my ears for this, though without the direct financial investment by the government.

If Sentry and the Pig cannot be competitive with a WalMart Neighborhood Market then why should the village be protecting the retailers instead of the consumers? That is exactly what this appears to be from my perspective. But enough with MP and Caledonia and their hysterics over WalMart. How about WalMart taking a look at a community that would welcome them, say like Sturtevant? Build a marketplace at H and 11?

@lias SturtResident

Did you read any aspects of the link I provided above? Do you, for example, condone the practice of pricing products below cost in order to drive out local competition?

Seriously? 3 Markets are not enough in that location? I don't think the decision to allow it should be based on increased tax revenue with the risk of losing an established business that has already invested in the community. Just how many more jobs would there really be if one market should happen to close and another one to falter? Besides if it's a matter of providing the choice of lower cost foods, Walmart's "Great Value" is not always cheaper than Piggly Wiggly's store brand, "Food Club". Just sayin' :)

Rees and Pamela, try reading my comments again. I started off by saying, "While I may not necessarily like a WalMart going in that location ..." My point is that government, in this case MP, should not have the ability to stop WalMart simply because there are already three other similar businesses in the vicinity and they want to protect those businesses. Government entities should not favor one business over another if the businesses are similar. Prohibiting certain types of businesses is a different matter altogether. Prohibiting adult establishments or pawn shops is fine if none already exist in the area, but that is not the case in this matter.

@lias SturtResident

You speak with forked tongue.

First of all you did NOT start off by saying "While I may not necessarily like a WalMart going in that location ..."

What you actually started off by saying was what Malicki wrote was "BS". Then you actually compared pawn shops to grocery stores? Give me a break.

These grocery stores are already a wonderful part of our community and we already are living with them just fine thank you. Your attempt at dividing us isn't going to work.

How about answering my question to you? Which you ignored in your reply.

"Did you read any aspects of the link I provided above? Do you, for example, condone the practice (by Walmart) of pricing products below cost in order to drive out local competition?" Well, do you?

I, for one, am glad we have the ability to regulate aggressive and militant businesses whose aim is to destroy local businesses. Walmart does not help to create a resilient community with the predatory practices it has.

Normally I wouldn't jump in on these comments but this subject is near and dear. I am the owner of the Pig on Washington. Please understand that at no time did I wish to imply that Walmart employees and managers are not members of the community, quite the opposite they draw employees from the same places we do which is indeed right here. I also support competition, as a whole it makes us all better, and I don't need the governement to step in and regulate that. However, that being said you need to do a logic check and ask yourself why would this corporation (WM) want to put a store within 2.5 miles of an existing location if not to dominate the market? Again, competition is good but this is not what this is. It takes x number of roof tops to support a market, just because another store opens doesn't mean there are that many more rooftops in the area. Someone is going to go away, just a fact. WM has a long and well documented history of this type of predatory behavior, if one of their stores fail to make the numbers they close and move on. In the long run there is no competition in this model. We have no intention of going away, since taking on this endeavor, we have made it our mission to put forth a quality and value driven store that is clean and well staffed with very good, responsive customer service, in the long run that will prevail and it is every bit our intention to be a benefit to the community.

Since we are on the subject of grocery stores. Why is there so much price manipulation. Take a box of rice. One week it's $3.89. The next 3 weeks it is $3.69. On the fourth week it is on sale for $3.69, with the words: you save .20!! It drives me crazy! And this is just one item of thousands. That is why so many people feel they are being taken as chumps when we shop. We trust grocers like we trust bankers. Hmmm.....

This should be a wake up call to our neighbor on the East side. If you want a grocery store and development, you need to get rid of the high crime, high taxes, and John Dickert.

Please - you can have this Wal-Mart for your Downtown, Uptown, West Racine, and Dougls Ave. area, and the rest of the ghetto-slum that is Racine.

I believe the Village Board owes it to the citizens of Mt Pleasant to carefully consider the merits of the Walmart Market. Yes, it would increase employment and property taxes, but at what cost? It seems according to the market study presented, that the possibility exists the two other grocery stores in the vicinity could close as a result of a new Walmart Market. That would result in an increase in unemployment, and a loss of property taxes. The fact that Sentry and Piggly Wiggly are anchors on retail complexes will result in a far greater loss in property taxes, as the assessed value of the entire complex will be lowered, rather then a stand alone building that closed. It seems to me that should make the decision easy for the board, and deny Walmart the permit. By the way, I do most of my shopping at Walmart and would much shop at a Walmart Market than the Supercenter on Durand Av. Perhaps Walmart should look else where such as Sturtevant or Frankville.

It appears that Walmart is attempting to dominate the retail markets in SE WI:

http://www.biztimes.com/news/2011/12/16/real-estate-walmart-building-boom-to-hit-region-in-2012

Do we really need ANOTHER Walmart?

The Mount Pleasant Planning Commission is to be commended for holding Wal-Marts feet to the fire and not accepting their flawed market study that did not meet the requirements as specified previously by the Committee.

The speech by Trustee Hewitt, blasting Wal-Mart, was inspiring and heart-stirring. For those who could not attend, it would be worth your time reading the transcripts of his speech.

Mike Pirk also did a fine job as Committee Chair, as he always does.

In Mt. Pleasant, we have some truly Community committed, dedicated and knowledgeable members on the Committee and on the Village Board.

Wal-Mart, Wal-Mart, go away and don't come back another day. Go see John Dickert and Racine - they will bend over backwards for you. You have your Super Center, now leave Mt. Pleasant alone. Racine will welcome you with open arms.

The DJL Research study says, "The impact of the new Walmart Market will most likely be fatal to the Washington Street Piggly Wiggly and the Sentry." Who paid for this independent study? Sentry and Piggly Wiggly. I would really like to see this market study. How much sales is the Wal-Mart expected to have and how does that compare to the other two stores.

Jason P

The issue isn't who paid for the studies. It is all about the KNOWN predatory practices Walmart has exhibited in towns, villages and cities across the country. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand when you price things below cost you will do damage to your competition. Is that what you want here?

As stated, "Trustee Jerry Garski at the July 20 Commission meeting made a motion (unanimously approved) that Walmart needed to provide an independent market study in no less than 60 days, that would show how a Neighborhood Market in that location would affect local grocers".
Hmmm.... Shouldn't it have been a closed deal as of Oct. 20th? What am I missing? Is the commission giving them another opportunity, even though Walmart pretty much blew them off by not filling their requirement?

Heather - you keep listing the Wal-Mart Supercenter as being in Sturtevant. Trustee Jerry Garski told me it's Mt. Pleasant. That area is confusing, so you need to check it out, and get the location right.

There are also larger issues at stake.

Walmart developments have often conflicted with Land Use Planning requirements, with Walmart representatives often expressing concern with having to abide by such requirements.

A State Assembly Bill (AB 303) has been proposed that largely repeals Land Use Planning requirements, thus opening the door to companies, such as Walmart, to propose the placement of commercial or industrial developments at conflicting or ill-conceived locations with little input from affected residents.

Because AB 303 is due to go to the State Senate for vote, learn about the bill (and the benefits of Land Use Planning that the bill seeks to eliminate) and encourage State Senators to oppose it.

www.ccrep.org

The traffic at 20 & 31 is too congested the way it is!
If I wanted to live next to a zoo, I would not have moved into this community.
I think WalMart should stay right where they are.

Both Piggly Wiggly and Sentry opened their arms to me as a local developer when I asked their permission to sell my local product (the Hang Away Universal Toothbrush Holder) in their stores. Years ago when I worked at Wal-Mart, I submitted a portfolio to Corporate Wal-Mart through their diversity new product program hoping they would support my product. They threatened to fire me if I even sold it in their competitor stores K-Mart & Target. Then within one month, Wal-Mart just created a crappy knock-off of my patented product.