85th & Audie, Here I come!
Well Walmart has just received the Kiss of Death, the AL’s endorsement. Of course, the AL knew this wasn’t going to be easy endorsing one of the most corrupt and largest retailers in the nation over the rights and wishes of (model) citizens in our community (who were there long before the rezone or WM).
The endorsement is a little surprising considering that,
1)Â Â Â There is a pending lawsuit &
2)Â Â Â since when does the AL weigh in on zoning & planning issues?
Well, I’m sure the Ed Board knew this would be a little sticky, so they do what the MSM is good at these days when they NEED to sell an idea, mislead;
Neighbors are concerned about the traffic a supercenter will create. But we’re not convinced neighbors would feel the same if Target, Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s were opening there instead. Yet other stores would create similar traffic.
WOW, how much misinformation can the Argus Misleader pack into one paragraph? On last week’s 100 Eyes show with SON representative, Dana Palmer and managing editor Patrick Lalley, Dana clearly said she didn’t care who built there, including WM, and admitted to shopping at WM. The SON group has 2 concessions that WM won’t budge on, size of store and hours of operation. If WM would consider these concessions, not only would SON accept them to the neighborhood, it would also reduce traffic.
Then there was this (mis)statement that the AL has been inking in their paper ever since Shape SF got revoked;
. . . and if zoning changes are turned down, we’ll revert to 30-year-old zoning rules.
Dana Palmer also clarified this on the 100 Eyes show (apparently the ED Board doesn’t even watch their own programming, probably a good thing, unless of course they are trying to fall asleep).
While the current zoning law was FIRST put into place in 1983, it has been changed and tweaked several times since then. Just a few years ago the council changed the zoning notification process. So saying this is a 30-year-old zoning ordinance isn’t just misleading, it’s kind of a lie, but I wouldn’t expect anything less out of the Beck and the gang.
The SON suit locks out Walmart. They’re not going to wait 5 years for litigation. They’re probably already looking near the I-29 Tea exit. The city attorney can’t win because he has no trial experience and state supreme court has ruled that city civil procedures are unconstitutional. Nonetheless, Huether will exhaust millions to a private law firm. After all, it’s our money not his.
Two things about the Argus Leader:
1. Their views oppose citizen perspective.
2. Nobody reads it.
Walmart will build there. Best spot. SON has a lame lawsuit. But that is what lawyers do. I think Walmart is already bringing in dirt to the west of that lot. Well, somebody is by the side dump full. A pile of dirt is accumulating. It will be built up. That Walmart will be the tallest piece of land out there. That is what they do. They do not want to be invisible. The east side Walmart moved lots of dirt as did the Menard’s. They use earthmovers to landscape what they want. It was impressive to watch both of those stores being landscaped and built. They both turned hills into flat lands.
Dana Palmer might be SON’s spokesperson, but many of their members are off message and telling a different story. This includes those who commonly comment on all of the Argus and Kelo articles that have anything to do with Walmart. This is likely why the AL is confused on the real reason SON is opposing the development.
Palmer makes it appear that now they are ok with the zoning itself (and ok with Walmart) but just not with the hours of operation or a Supercenter. That in itself is silly since just a couple of weeks ago their argument was against the traffic along 85th and the impact to their children…. I somehow doubt the traffic at 2AM would be an issue, and if their children are out playing in the streets at that time of day they have bigger issues than Walmart.
Now if you go to their website, SON argues against any type of zoning which would allow Walmart at that location as they want a buffer of multi-family housing etc. This would push Walmart to another location because last I heard you can’t build two things on the same space. Their lawsuit is also designed to fight against zoning – and it has nothing to do with hours of operation.
They have also updated their website to remove some of the information they had posted previously and now are focused upon land use adjacent to single family homes and comparing other developments.
So in reality, it is difficult to know what SON really is opposing here since their story seems to change with the prevailing winds.
Well, you really can’t blame them to change their arguments, the city plays the same game. The bigger point of my post was how the AL Ed board will print misinformation to support their endorsement. FACT, Palmer is the one named in the lawsuit AND she did say she is fine with a WM at that location, but smaller. She may have changed her position the next day, but the day she was on the show with an ED board member, Lalley, that is what she said. Also, the bullshit line about reverting back to the 1983 zoning ordinances is getting old, real old. It is a flat out lie and the AL needs to knock it off.
“I think Walmart is already bringing in dirt to the west of that lot. Well, somebody is by the side dump full. A pile of dirt is accumulating.”
That is for the Van Buskirick development.
From my email box;
“Either way there is another issue at play here. A company by the name of Pinnacle Investments, LLC has been buying up homes in the Twin Eagles area and currently owns the following properties:
1200 W WHISPERING ST
1005 W GOLDEN EAGLE ST
1005 W TRADEWINDS ST
909 W GOLDEN EAGLE ST
701 W STERLING OAK CIR
704 W TRADEWINDS ST
They also own a few other properties just outside Twin Eagle to the North. So what makes a company start buying so much property in one area unless they feel there is a potential return on their investment, and what relationship (if any) do they have with SON?”
Good question. I am also wondering if Pinnacle Investments is the same ‘Pinnacle’ that owns CJ Callaways, Foleys and Tre Lounge?
Who selected the picture? Class warfare?
C’mon guys, I was having a hard time finding peaches alright.