I don't understand the opposition to Walmart at Blue Ridge Mall

I am not by any means a big fan of Walmart, but I just don't understand why anyone would be against them as part of a development to replace Blue Ridge Mall. For any of you who are not familiar with Blue Ridge Mall, it was once anchored by Montgomery Wards, The Jones Store and J.C. Penneys. It is currently anchored by the powerhouse retailer Appleby's. Yeah, you read that right, an Appleby's restaurant is the anchor at the mall, not exactly a good sign. Don't get me wrong, its a good Appleby's, but let's be real.

So a developer is pushing a plan to tear down the mall to build a new strip mall or open air shopping center built around a WalMart supercenter. And people are against this, they would rather look at the decaying hulk of a mall that is Blue Ridge Mall instead of having something new that will bring business, jobs, and actually draw people there. Its not a bad location, at the intersection of US 40 and I70, and within a couple of miles of the stadiums.

The plan was approved by the KC city council, so it should happen but still hard to believe that many people are against it. Incidentally, if its like most WalMart openings, those that are against it will be there shopping looking for bargains.

Read about it here:
http://examiner.net/stories/022405/new_022405004.shtml

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