Wal-Mart Sues to Overturn Supercenter Ban
1/26/2004 11:45 PM
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 26, 2004 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. sued Monday to overturn an Alameda County law that would forbid its grocery-stuffed Supercenters, marking the giant retailer's latest move to protect its turf as it embarks on a major California expansion.
The Alameda County Superior Court complaint seeks to invalidate the ban on several grounds, including a claim that the Alameda County Board of Supervisors exceeded its authority by passing a law that imposes "unusual and unnecessary restrictions on lawful business enterprises."
Three other California communities - Contra Costa County and the cities of Oakland and Martinez - have approved similar laws to block Wal-Mart's Supercenters. Wal-Mart is trying to revoke the Contra Costa County ban with a voter referendum in March.
Monday's suit marks the second time Wal-Mart has turned to the courts to reverse a community ban on its Supercenters, said company spokeswoman Amy Hill. Wal-Mart already is embroiled in a long-running legal battle in Tucson, Ariz.
The Alameda County law, approved earlier this month, prohibits stores that exceed 100,000 square feet and devote more than 10 percent of the space to nontaxable merchandise, such as groceries.
Wal-Mart's Supercenters have an average of 187,000 square feet, with a major portion devoted to a sprawling grocery department that sells nontaxable food at prices below many traditional supermarkets.
Alameda County Supervisor Alice Lai-Bitker, the law's author, says the ban isn't aimed at Wal-Mart, but Hill said the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer views the limitation as an attack its business as it prepares to open 40 Supercenters during the next four to six years.
The first of Wal-Mart's California Supercenters in scheduled to open in the Riverside County city of La Quinta in March.
With more than 1,500 Supercenters across the country, Wal-Mart maintains the concept has proven to be a boon for consumers who reap substantial savings on their monthly grocery bills while shopping for a wide variety of other discount merchandise in a single trip.
But more communities recently have been shunning the Supercenters, citing studies that the sprawling stores cause major traffic headaches and supplant better-paying supermarket jobs with low-wage Wal-Mart positions. |
