Wal-Mart plan isn’t a good fit

So far, it seems, Cedar Rapids city leaders aren't buying Wal-Mart's preliminary bid to put a supercenter on the city's southeast side.

It's still very early. Wal-Mart has submitted only a concept plan to city staff. Annexation and rezoning would still have to happen. Neither of those lengthy processes has begun. If this project was a 60-inch flat-screen TV, it would be on layaway, with many payments left.

Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett said this week that he opposes the idea of building a large store at Mount Vernon Road SE and East Post Road SE, and that it has little or no support among members of the City Council. Council member Scott Olson said Wal-Mart once talked about a smaller, urban store, but submitted plans for a supercenter instead. So far, the project's large footprint has proved to be a step in the wrong direction when it comes to garnering the support of local elected leaders.

Public opposition to the project has vastly outweighed support. Residents in nearby neighborhoods have strongly criticized the idea.

'After walking the site and thinking about it and now that I've seen their site plan, I just don't know how I can support this,” Council member Pat Shey, who represents those neighborhoods, told KCRG-TV9's Forrest Saunders last week.

We're not convinced another Wal-Mart store is necessary, especially with Marion's supercenter sitting just a few miles away. As with most populous places in the U.S., no Cedar Rapids resident lives more than a short drive from a Wal-Mart.

We also appreciate that residents with strong feelings about the project are getting vocal and active early. Citizens should be involved even in the early stages of development plans that could dramatically affect their neighborhoods. This won't be one of those unfortunate cases where residents are caught unaware.

If Wal-Mart decides to formally submit its plans, despite strong early opposition, we believe it should be treated procedurally like any other developer, and receive a fair hearing from staff and elected officials. City officials should make the same demands they make of other projects, that they and residents also should receive a fair hearing.

We're willing to let Wal-Mart make its case. But we don't think it's plan is a good fit, and it's going to take considerable work to change our mind, or the minds of residents and officials.

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