Talk of Austin

By anon

December 24, 2006 01:45 PM | Link to this

Walmart is already there, Lowes. Target, HEB, Lowes, HD, all with similar business models.. nobody would complain.. but Wally.. wow, that’s bad! This Wally is actually a new concept wally world.. more upper scale. Either way, it will fail. Might as well bulldoze & build 800,000 houses for ppl to live who will shop at Tiffany’s at the Domain.

By Ronny

December 24, 2006 10:08 AM | Link to this

This is being developed by a Dallas property company - Where I am sure most of you pro. people are from. Leave us our Austin unique charm and go back to Dallas where its like living in a strip mall.

Austin does not need another Super Wal-Mart when one was just expanded that is literally 3 miles away.

By Anonymous

December 20, 2006 04:38 PM | Link to this

It looks like WalMart won’t be going in. Once a major retailer gets pushed away, others won’t look at the property. Like other abandoned projects, maybe the place can decay for a decade. Maybe some graffitti and homeless will move in for a while, then let it eventually be razed and a cement/aggregate comany can move in.

By jack

December 19, 2006 04:58 PM | Link to this

It’s the process that bothers me more than anything. Those of us who live in the neighborhood should have been ASKED by the city to provide our input up front. They should respect our opinions first. All they care about is tax $$$$.

By Fred Herrera

December 18, 2006 09:25 AM | Link to this

My only cocern is the traffic this project will have on an already out of control traffic situation. I live on Mullen Drive right off of Anderson Lane, and it is a nightmare trying to get onto Anderson from my street. Posted speed limit on Anderson is 45mph, but that is never the case, cars zoom by at speeds upwards of 60mph, hense an accident waiting to happen. Austin police patrol the area but not often enough. School zone at Redeemer school is very seldom observed.

By Get A Grip People

December 18, 2006 09:22 AM | Link to this

Let’s just all take a step back for a second. Since when is Anderson Lane a “neighborhood?” Last time I checked we are talking about a MALL that could turn into a WalMart. Did you forget this. Anderson Lane is a retail shopping area, not a neighborhood. If you don’t want the WalMart next to you, move. I bet within 6 months of it being up and running, you’ll be in there shopping.

By Anonymous

December 17, 2006 01:04 PM | Link to this

It impacts quality of life in that it may draw poor people or other undesirables and their traffic into the neighborhood to shop or work.

By ABA

December 16, 2006 01:18 PM | Link to this

Anonymous, I have every damn right to be selfish. This is where I LIVE. This will directly impact my QUALITY OF LIFE.

By Anonymous

December 16, 2006 11:03 AM | Link to this

Help stop selfishness (disguised as being concerned for the community) in Austin. Stop letting the people who won’t shop at Wal-Mart anyways dictate what stores those of us who don’t make as much money as they do can shop at. As far as being an employeer, those jobs are great for 18 year olds who otherwise may not have had the oppurtunity to work somewhere short term, or the recently unemployed who need a few bucks to feed their kids till something better comes around.

By A.D.

December 16, 2006 07:49 AM | Link to this

Just put a Starbucks in it and everyone will STHU.

By steak with cheese

December 15, 2006 07:41 PM | Link to this

What did the bird say when he flow over walmart cheep cheep!!!say no and save austin

By TexasPatriot

December 15, 2006 06:35 PM | Link to this

I’m so glad to see all of you people getting out and protesting the big, bad Walmart taking over your neighborhood! Wish you also help us protest the millions of hostile Illegal Immigrants threatening to take over our country! www.stopthenorthamericanunion.com

By matt

December 15, 2006 04:38 PM | Link to this

others better than me can give you fact upon fact why wal-mart is a bad idea, but i only wish to leave you this to ponder.

when did it become the norm to choose very small, very short-term, and very short-sighted savings over the greater good of one’s own long term well being?

put your own meager savings by shopping at a irresponsible retailer into true scope. don’t be cattle.

buy local. support austin. visit www.rg4n.org

By Bill S.

December 15, 2006 04:18 PM | Link to this

Most of the pro-Wal Marters are stooges, hired by the PR companies. Kinda like “Jim and Laura.”

By Lucky enough to be born here!

December 15, 2006 11:48 AM | Link to this

“It’s Great … we need Walmarts all over Central Austin … all the better to keep Yuppie newcomers away!”

LOL! I remember when the yuppies of Austin were the only ones who could afford to shop at boutiques or upscale grocers like Whole Foods. Seems like today’s Austinites have the definitions of yuppies and hippis confused. Keep it weird, folks!

By LJ

December 15, 2006 09:51 AM | Link to this

I wonder if all these supportive posters would feel the same if a super-WalMart were going in just blocks from THEIR houses, gyms, cycling routes, etc. It doesn’t take a lot of intelligence to look at where all the other WalMarts in town are located—along MAJOR HIGHWAYS!!! This is in a neighborhood! What do you think this is going to do to the traffic in that area? There is no way to make this workable.

NO TO WALMART!

By Dixie Mae

December 15, 2006 08:23 AM | Link to this

Having been a Wal-Mart shopper for years, I cannot see the harm in bringing a busy bustling store to that dead space. Like several before me have said, if you don’t like it.. MOVE! Wal-Mart.. come on in!

By keith

December 14, 2006 09:02 PM | Link to this

you know I find it kinda funny that the neighborhood around Northcross are making such a big stink about WalMart. Where was the neighborhood when the mall was going “down”? I think it’s kinda two faced that they really didn’t care about keeping the mall an attractive entity but once something wants to come in and revigorate the mall, they are throwing a stink, even if it only WalMart

By Life-long Austinite

December 14, 2006 07:36 PM | Link to this

I bet most of you posting here weren’t even around when Northcross Mall was built. It was the major destination for shopping at that time. It was great! It has died and this will help bring it back. If you don’t like it you can leave and take the rest of the tree huggin’ freaks with you!

By Diana

December 14, 2006 04:46 PM | Link to this

I agree with most, i am saddened that a walmart will go in, it could have been such a great retail area that would contribute to the community with local niche shops - instead we are making a move towards the generic. and the traffic, ugh, the traffic…i live only blocks away, so this aspect of the change is likely the most depressing.

By Ed

December 14, 2006 03:15 PM | Link to this

It’s interesting to read the replies to this article. Most of the “anti’s” use generic things like health insurance and low wages as their reason. Wal-Mart is one of the biggest corporations in the world. They are not going to stop just because a few people don’t like them.

What about the lower prices and the people who are on a limited budget? Aren’t these people’s lives improved by being near a W-M?

By Robert

December 14, 2006 01:50 PM | Link to this

You have to remember, the people who oppose Wal-Mart jobs are: A Yuppie NIMBY socialist thinkers who prefer to keep the poor people poor and on welfare (classism / socialism) as long as they get to keep their good jobs and status. B Unions, becasue Wal-Mart is not union (it can’t be, without becoming a HIGH priced store and losing it’s customers) C Small Business owners (whose complaints about being priced out of business ARE valid)

By Robert

December 14, 2006 01:39 PM | Link to this

I have a nice job now, but if I got fired tomorrow I wouldn’t hesitate to work for Wal-Mart in the short term to feed my family. Think of them as transitional jobs.

By Robert

December 14, 2006 01:39 PM | Link to this

Sure, bring it on. People who want to shop at Wal-Mart will shop at Wal-Mart, it’ll just save gas if there is another one. As far as jobs go, all they will do is provide jobs that otherwise would not be there. It’s not like the people who get jobs there would have gone on to high paying jobs if WalMart wasn’t there. There just would have been more competition for jobs at Target or some other retail store.

By chuck

December 14, 2006 01:35 PM | Link to this

Wally World can always move to the old JC Penney at Highland Mall!! Northcross should concentrate on traditional retailers revitalizing its shopping center

By mary

December 14, 2006 01:08 PM | Link to this

This is such a bad idea it is no wonder they had to sneak it in. Next they will have to sneak in a toll road to take care of all the traffic. Yikes. NO TO WALMART.

By Rachael

December 14, 2006 01:05 PM | Link to this

My mother-im-law lives 2 streets away and is thrilled that Wal-Mart is coming. There are no good grocery stores in the area. And, there are a lot of elderly people living in the area that love Wal-Mart and are excited about the store.

By NP

December 14, 2006 12:55 PM | Link to this

Northcorss is dying! Why not a WalMart? You notice Neiman Marcus didn’t choose this location for their store. As someone else stated, this isn’t West Lake.

By glen

December 14, 2006 12:41 PM | Link to this

If this was Westlake Hills, or anything west of Mopac, 2 phone calls by the rich who live there, and Walmart would be running so fast, but its just another middle class nieghborhood that walmart can stomp on, there is a walmart 2 miles away at 183 and I35, why do we need another one? I know of 4 others 3 miles from northcross, why the over kill?

By Beatrice Martinez

December 14, 2006 12:06 PM | Link to this

I love the wallmarts. I buy all my underwear (size XXXL) from there. They fit like a glove!

By Freethinker

December 14, 2006 12:02 PM | Link to this

Walmart just doesn’t belong in Central Austin. Neiman-Marcus, yes. Central Market, yes. Walmart? I don’t think so.

By Octavious Rex

December 14, 2006 11:55 AM | Link to this

THE JOY OF FREE ENTERPRISE!!! IF YOU BUILD IT … THE NON-CITIZENS WILL COME.

By native austinite

December 14, 2006 11:47 AM | Link to this

I’m just laughing at the post (above) that said Wal-Mart will attract crime to this precious little (Yogurt Shop Murders) neighborhood.

By Odyzzeuz

December 14, 2006 11:28 AM | Link to this

The world needs more retail outlets.

By Clay White

December 14, 2006 11:27 AM | Link to this

Don’t see any problems with putting a Wal-Mart or any other “Big Box” retailer at that location. The whole area along Anderson has been in a downward spin, this may help bring it back up. The traffic has been neglected for a long time; the city needs to finally step up. Most of the talking is from people who believe what a union says about the company. This is a union who wants the opportunity to fleece the workers for its own gain.

By reb

December 14, 2006 11:26 AM | Link to this

Point #1 Walmart is cheap… Point #2 The traffic would be horrific Point #3 Not only do they have the longest lines in history… but the parking is horrble after 10am on weekends, not only would there be more agressive driving… there would be aggreasive thieves.

Wal mart may be the best to some on the planet ..but it is a living nightmare.

By Dave2

December 14, 2006 11:25 AM | Link to this

I live in the area and love the idea of a WalMart coming to Northcross! If you want to drive all over town buring extra gas and spending more than you have to in order to support small, local business, go ahead. I’ll chose a one stop, low price place EVERY time. As for traffic, IT’S A MALL! Before it’s decline, many many people went there…a lot. How soon before it opens?

By Will

December 14, 2006 11:19 AM | Link to this

By all means yes. This is a simple matter of benefits outweighing drawbacks. Wal-Mart traffic won’t be any worse than the mall traffic was back in Northcross’ heyday.

By Liz

December 14, 2006 10:56 AM | Link to this

Keep the development at the scale of existing businesses! Groceries - great! Economic revitalization - great! 24,000 car trips a day headed to Northcross - NO!!!

By matt

December 14, 2006 10:55 AM | Link to this

A recent study by researchers at UC Berkeley’s Labor Center has quantified what happened to retail wages when Wal-Mart set up shop, drawing on 15 years of data on actual store openings. The study found that Wal-Mart drives down wages in urban areas, with an annual loss of at least $3 billion dollars in earnings for retail workers

By Fred

December 14, 2006 10:52 AM | Link to this

Stop the madness

December 14, 2006 08:14 AM | Link to this

“There are no new stores springing up around the Cabela’s in Buda, and this store would be larger.”

You are right… no new stores started springing up around Cabela’s until they opened the new Wal*Mart. Now there are new restaurants and soon to be several other stores opening up.

By emgr

December 14, 2006 10:41 AM | Link to this

Notice how the posts that are supportive of Wal-Mart are the ones with the most spelling and grammatical errors? Hmmmmm…..

This is my neighborhood. I have a reasonable expectation of transparency. The process was sleazy. There was no dialogue with the neighborhood. It was planned and executed under the cover of darkness. I am glad that there will now be an opportunity for all parties to participate. That is a democracy and the way it should have happened from the beginning.

By Brian

December 14, 2006 10:32 AM | Link to this

Anderson Lane can NOT sustain that kind of traffic. This 220,000 sq structure does not belong on a city street, but rather an Interstate Highway.

By dave

December 14, 2006 10:16 AM | Link to this

It’s Great … we need Walmarts all over Central Austin … all the better to keep Yuppie newcomers away!

By Sid

December 14, 2006 10:14 AM | Link to this

I don’t want another Walmart anywhere. They’re too big of a monopoly and are part of a cheating corporate oligarchy currently corrupting the political process in the US and the world. Don’f feed the machine - rage against it.

By elliot

December 14, 2006 10:06 AM | Link to this

j.r., you have apparently been smoking some of that “nutso” austin weed if you think that wal-mart has ever been a “great neighbor” or a “super employer”. wal-mart profiteers at the expense of its minimum wage employees, chinese products, and government subsidies. if that’s what you think is “normal”, then i for one do want to keep austin “weird”.

By John

December 14, 2006 10:03 AM | Link to this

Walmart in a mall? You’ve got to be kidding. When I first heard Northcross was going to be “revitalized” I was pleased. But Walmart Supercenter is not my idea of a new and improved Northcross.

By No Tax Subsidy!

December 14, 2006 10:02 AM | Link to this

It’s all about the traffic. I don’t care if it’s WalMart or Saks. If a store that size adds an additional x cars a day to the area, then the developer should be required to add that amount of additional traffic capacity. I suspect in this case, they would have to make Anderson and Burnet roads 8 lane, and add flyovers to the Mopac interchange. If they do that, let em build!

By Austin Native

December 14, 2006 09:57 AM | Link to this

The Wal-Mart sounds like a good fit to me. Not only does the area need a grocery store, but it needs to be improved with new stores. The mall is dead. With some changes to the surrounding streets, it will be fine.

By stan

December 14, 2006 09:56 AM | Link to this

hopefully people will stand up against the community killer.walmart puts more small businesses out of business than the great depression did. 90% of their merchandise is out sourced to china.

By Margaret

December 14, 2006 09:51 AM | Link to this

Very odd that there are so many positive comments here given that most of the folks I know that live in the area are opposed. For me, it is the size of the Walmart that is objectionable. If a 100,000 sf grocery (one of the floors of the Walmart)goes in as planned, the draw will be unsustainable considering the access. The roads will be choked with traffic. I think many of us in the area feel betrayed by the players.

By Devil in the Blue Vest

December 14, 2006 09:37 AM | Link to this

Do we really need another major shopping destination?

By David

December 14, 2006 09:27 AM | Link to this

When Wal-Mart comes to Northcross, expect all Local businesses like Terra-Toys to either move, or go out of business. So instead of local money staying in Austin, it will head out to Bentonville, Arkansas. I’d much rather keep my money in Austin.

By Richard

December 14, 2006 09:17 AM | Link to this

I’m not sure if it is a good fit or not. I don’t necessary object to it. I do find the way it was handled to be devious and the city claiming they could do nothing because the propery owner holds the permits for the work to be done to be less than honest.

By Urban

December 14, 2006 09:10 AM | Link to this

Look at the huge retail/residential center that is planned less than 2 miles north of Anderson lane. What do you think will become of Northcross Mall then? That area needs to be commercially revitalized ASAP or else it will end up being like that area south of Burnet and Koenig lane - a commercial no-mans land but with less charm.

By Bryan

December 14, 2006 09:06 AM | Link to this

I was in Northcross Mall the other night, at one of the anchor stores. The place was dark, and empty of patrons. Adding a Wal-Mart has got to be an improvement.

By CT

December 14, 2006 08:27 AM | Link to this

Lets be real the area is terrible. Wal-Mart may improve it. Look at all the jobs it will bring. Why not… most people are not rich. This is not West Lake area-

By Catherine

December 14, 2006 08:24 AM | Link to this

It’s a great fit - I am anxiously awaiting Wal-Mart. I live in the area, and don’t remember a controversy over Lowe’s, also a big box store. It has certainly made it easier to get things for the house and yard. I think it would also bring more traffic to all the other stores in the area.

By El Stone

December 14, 2006 08:23 AM | Link to this

Hey let WalMart come! There’s room for another Houston right here in central Texas!

By brian

December 14, 2006 08:19 AM | Link to this

You silly fools, Wal-Mart supresses wages also practices the great art of sweat shop labor just for you people to enjoy that 15 cent discount for your fat sweat-pants and Dale Earnhardt shirts. God Bless Wal-Mart and the people who shop there. Tear Northcross down just like the proposal for Wal-Mart.

By Henry

December 14, 2006 08:18 AM | Link to this

WalMart is a great idea! With Conn’s in the parking lot and if Beall’s would rebuild Northcross could position itself as the Domain for the middle class. Go WalMart don’t give in.

PS why hasn’t SOS stepped in and filed a lawsuit, this sounds like a perfect time for them to get some exposure.

By Stop the madness

December 14, 2006 08:14 AM | Link to this

There are no new stores springing up around the Cabela’s in Buda, and this store would be larger.

And no, it wasn’t done perfectly legally. It was illegally processed as an “administrative” site plan - meaning no public hearings - when it should have been processed as a regular site plan through the normal public processes.

Shame on Lincoln Property Company.

By Liz

December 14, 2006 08:11 AM | Link to this

Interesting how none of my comments supporting the Responsible Growth folks have been posted by the moderators. A Wal-Mart in scale with other stores in the neighborhood (HEB, Target, Ross, etc.) would be fine - but they want to build a regional draw and put it in the middle of older, established neighborhoods, only served by surface roads. Sheer insanity.

By Scott

December 14, 2006 08:11 AM | Link to this

We should change the slogan “Keep Austin Weird” to “Keep Austin Smug”.

Malls usually don’t attract local businesses, but big name chins, so why would the walmart be bad? Northcross mall has already hit rock bottom, and it’s not like they’re building liquor stores and strip clubs.

How about a K-Mart. We don’t have any in Austin last I checked. A Staples would be nice too.

By kelly

December 14, 2006 08:11 AM | Link to this

Walmart is NOT a good fit. Traffic on Burnet/Anderson is already a mess most of the day. Putting 3x the amount of traffic over there will be a nightmare. They should raze half the mall and build an outdoor park to match the ice skating rink.

By Duron

December 14, 2006 08:04 AM | Link to this

Walmart will drive down the quality of business in the area. During the late 80’s Northcross carried Woodrow and surrounding neighborhoods. It made that area what it is today. If we allow Walmart to come in with yet another stuporcenter, we effectively gut Northcross. If there’s another economic downturn, do you think Walmart is going to keep it’s doors open to the surrounding neighborhood?

By Marilyn

December 14, 2006 08:04 AM | Link to this

I stopped going to Northcross Mall 10 years ago, because it was quite simply a depressing experience. I’m not crazy about Walmart being there, but I do think that it will revitalize the area. By the way- how many mom and pop stores pay for health insurance for part timers? Why is Walmart being singled out here??? Let’s hope they build w/solar panels, and other green building - to help offset high energy usage.

By Lou

December 14, 2006 07:39 AM | Link to this

Hardly any of the whining “neighbors” live really close to the longtime commercial site. They are being duped into acting like professional anti-WalMart-ers and no-growth protestors. Why not support an upscale WalMart ala the one in in Plano to improve that sorry Northcross site?

By rich

December 14, 2006 07:36 AM | Link to this

Build it, but with some consessions, make Wally pay for new sidewalks, bike lanes, road improvements, community bussing, no deseial truck idling, sell local products and produce, are you listening City Council..?, if we would have asked for these items in the past Blunn creek trail could have been extended to the Wally Mart at Ben White and customers could walk/bike to the store.

By Charles Smith

December 14, 2006 07:36 AM | Link to this

I would love it if a WalMart was built there. The people that say that it will increase traffice, crime, etc. have no clue. The areas that contain a WalMart has shown no increase in crime and the traffic that comes along with the new developement just shows that there is money being spent to help the economy.

By thinkaboutit

December 14, 2006 07:08 AM | Link to this

Why good heavens no! We should rather let Northcross Mall die a slow, agonizing death giving further rise to the Burnet Road creeping blight of businesses. Let the minority voices rule, let us all roll over for the few. But don’t you nay-sayers dare shop at the cursed big-box HEB stores, or any other mom-and-pop closers for your essentials. Shame on you.

By S.S.

December 14, 2006 07:01 AM | Link to this

We DO NOT want SprawlMart in our neighbordhood! We DO NOT need the crime increase that will ensue once SprawlMart moves into the area. We DO NOT want the traffic through our neighborhoods streets. (I don’t mean the main streets.) SprawlMarts should stay in the suburbs where they are now. We do not need them INSIDE the city, inside our neighborhoods.

By leslie

December 14, 2006 06:55 AM | Link to this

Absolutely a perfect fit! The mall has been trashy from day one. Wal Mart will clean the place up.

It is a free world. Let the chips fall. The Austin City Council should give themselves another raise! They should make what they are really worth..zero!!!

By Welcome!

December 14, 2006 06:42 AM | Link to this

Come on Walmart! Sun Harvest doesn’t offer the variety and Central Market is too expensive. And, senior citizens don’t ice skate! Finally something for everyone, not the select few! The snobs won’t prevail this time. I’m sure they shop Walmart now but are ashamed to tell their friends. Welcome Walmart!

By Fred

December 14, 2006 06:06 AM | Link to this

When all the “part-time” uninsured Wal-Mart employees show up at the ER or call EMS, all of us that live here will have to pay millions in extra tax dollars. Expanding Burnet Road and Anderson Lane will dislocate all the small businesses along those roads-these are people that have to pay the taxes that Wal-Mart ducks.

By Carl Zimmerman

December 14, 2006 05:47 AM | Link to this

What a surprise that a mall is a commercial enterprise?! This is more about the “Walmart is the Store of the Anti-Christ” tinfoil hat set than responsible growth. If these folks are concerned about traffic and people, why do they live in town?

By CJ

December 14, 2006 05:36 AM | Link to this

Build the WalMart, please! It will me a much needed store for that area. Those opposed will probably be the first to frequent the store and save money. And by the way, WalMart stores do not “poison” a neighborhood like some say.

By peter Ten Eyck

December 14, 2006 05:07 AM | Link to this

I don’t know if Walmart is a good fit but SOMETHING must be done to revitilize Northcross. I’m afraid if WALmart isn’t allowed to build there(they can’t really stop it,it’s perfectly legal) Chaparralice won’t get to build a new ice rink there,and as a recreational hockey player we DESPERATELY need another ice surface.

By fred

December 14, 2006 04:16 AM | Link to this

Northcross Mall has been a losing piece of garbage since I got here in ‘78. The place never had very many good stores and only the ice rink kept it interesting. If WalMart can make it there, so be it.

By Alan

December 14, 2006 03:46 AM | Link to this

For those people who decry big-box development: somehow you must think that mom-and-pop stores will magically spring up in Northcross if you spend your time whining in a meeting about Wal-Mart. But what you’ll eventually find is the opposite - you’ll see that small stores actually do open up on the pads surrounding Wal-Mart stores. When they do, be sure to put your money where your mouth is, and shop in those stores!

By Alan

December 14, 2006 03:40 AM | Link to this

It sounds like the whiners here are just dead set against Wal-Mart in any form. Get a clue. No matter what stores are there, the items being sold are made overseas for as little as possible, and that won’t change, no matter how much you stamp your feet. In all these stores, people are paid minimum wage and are scheduled for less than 40 hours to avoid benefits, etc. Those shops’ storefronts are no less ugly or big-box than the design of an urban Wal-Mart, and they ALL bring a bunch of traffic.

By Alan

December 14, 2006 03:40 AM | Link to this

To the people who want a pedestrian-friendly community set up there like the Triangle or the Mueller Redevelopment: Get a clue - you’re about 10 years too late. It took 20 years to get plans set and moving forward at Mueller - do you think that it’s going to magically happen at Northcross, and appear overnight? The Triangle is still being developed, so if it’s your ideal of what a neighborhood should be, and that important to you, then I’m sure that you’ll find some way of moving there.

By Alan

December 14, 2006 03:39 AM | Link to this

Area residents somehow think that Wal-Mart, even in a more upscale, urban, two-story format with parking garages, will somehow hurt their property values. What? Somehow a nearly vacant mall wasn’t doing that already? Hate to break it to you, but that whole area is already a series of unsightly strip malls with snarled-up traffic, and it is “hardly a prize”.

By Alan

December 14, 2006 03:39 AM | Link to this

Now that Wal-Mart is moving in, somehow it’s the end of the world? Maybe it’s been so long that those who fear this change have forgotten how trafficky a THRIVING mall is, versus the run-down ghost town that Northcross has become.

By Alan

December 14, 2006 03:37 AM | Link to this

So… these people who are crying about the redevelopment of Northcross mall, where were YOU when it was in a downward spiral? During all those years, why weren’t you pooling your money to buy out the place? And if somehow you think that you have the right to dictate to the owners of the property who is or is not appropriate for your neighborhood, why weren’t you out there, soliciting tenants for it?

By S.C.

December 14, 2006 03:21 AM | Link to this

If nearby residents don’t want Wal-Mart to move in, they should take matters into their own hands instead of complaining. They could form a corporation, buy Northcross and do with it whatever they please.

By Marco

December 14, 2006 12:58 AM | Link to this

The area does not need anymore traffic. If you live around here then you know. These “whiners” would like to keep what mom and pops are left on Burnet/Anderson/etc. If you want to get your extra low prices, go drive to 183/35 one. Anyone who supports this big box retailer is a poser who knows nothing of this specific area in Austin.

By C

December 14, 2006 12:15 AM | Link to this

let’s just continue to let that complete eyesore of a diseased retail center continue to get older and older, not doing anything to try and revitalize it for additional development to help boost the area. what a bunch of whiners.

By Terry

December 13, 2006 11:14 PM | Link to this

It is a great idea. Leave them alone & let them build. It is already a commercial area. We need a Wal-Mart close to us. They are a great addition.

By c

December 13, 2006 11:09 PM | Link to this

Considering that the original infrastructure was a mall, I would say that a Walmart would be a good fit. There is plenty of parking. Sounds like there is nothing that the locals can do about it anyway. Walmart is w/in their right. Let’s just be honest, the locals just don’t want “Walmart people” in their neighborhood. Furthermore, the people that don’t want Walmart in their neighborhood, travel to the “burbs” to frequent Walmart.

By Sondra

December 13, 2006 11:08 PM | Link to this

WalMart has a long history of exploitation, both in the way of the environment and employment practices, which should be reasons enough for Austin to say NO to further expansion of its chain here. Add to it the traffic congestion nightmare that Anderson and Burnet would become… Just say NO!

By Katherine

December 13, 2006 10:56 PM | Link to this

I absolutely hate the idea of a Wal-Mart going into the Northcross Mall (I live two blocks away). Wal-Mart poisons every neighborhood it enters with low-skill, low-pay jobs and cheap, poor-quality imports. We need to take Northcross in an upward direction, not downwards with a monster store like Wal-Mart.

By Ed

December 13, 2006 10:53 PM | Link to this

I think the new Wal-Mart would be good for this area. The old shopping center is deteriorating and the nearby businesses could gain more business from the increase in traffic.

By ELI

December 13, 2006 10:43 PM | Link to this

Go Wal-Mart!

It’s time for a change. I’m tired of having to drive miles and miles to a Wal-Mart to save money. I want Wal-Mart on Burnet Road. Go Wal-Mart!!!

By LY

December 13, 2006 10:36 PM | Link to this

I disagree that Walmart is a great employer. What about the lack of health insurance available for its workers? The last store needed is another big box WalMart.

By hunter warren

December 13, 2006 10:33 PM | Link to this

Wal-Mart has a reputation of depressing local economies, by driving down wages, swiping business from local merchants, and not offering its’ employees health insurance. THey have a history of being terrible neighbors. There’s not a good place for Wal-Mart anywhere. Why shouldn’t our dollars stay in the community? Let’s support our local businesses instead of Bentonville, Ark.

By Danley

December 13, 2006 10:18 PM | Link to this

Walmart is good for the area. We need a store of that scale to serve the neighborhood. Walmart should go ahead with its plan and build the 24 hour supercenter. I hope it can be finished before Summer of 2008.

I also think that it’s time to expand Burnet Rd and Anderson lane. 6-8 lanes around Northcross mall at least.

By Tarvin

December 13, 2006 10:12 PM | Link to this

Hmm. It was a mall before, with access to Burnet Road and Anderson Lane, both major roads. Sounds like it was already a big retail center with big roads around it. I won’t shop there, I don’t shop at Walmart. Best thing to do is let WalMart build it, then boycott it. Then there’ll be another dead retail center (mall, big box, whatever)

By r.gonza

December 13, 2006 09:58 PM | Link to this

Go!! Walmart all this thing about runing moms and pops out of business is all talk Walmart is a great place to shop at low prices and all this you hear about Walmart not offering insurance to there enployees is not true. they offer insurance to all there associates but if you work there and and you choose not to get the insurance it’s not walmart’s fault.

By Stanley M. Watts

December 13, 2006 09:24 PM | Link to this

I think that WAL-Mart would have a greate Location and it will add new jobs for the Austin aeria. As a matter of fact the company should redevelop all of Northcross Mall not a part of it.