An election worth watching:
Inglewood, CA- April 2- A majority of city council members in this suburban Los Angeles community opposed construction of a new Wal- Mart Super center in town. So the retail giant mounted a public ballot box initiative to bypass the town government, and proceed with construction.
Residents will vote on the issue Tuesday, in a campaign which has deeply divided residents. Opponents claim Wal- Mart paid off people to sign petitions and get the issue put to a vote, a charge the Bentonville, Arkansas giant denies.
Wal-Mart has waged ballot-box battles from Eureka to Calexico in California. But Inglewood's Measure 04-A is the firm's first use of the state's initiative process to bypass city government and ask voters to approve construction of a shopping center the size of 14 football fields.
Opponents say that a win by Wal-Mart would set a precedent for corporations to exempt their big development projects from government review by putting them on the ballot. "This is creating a sovereign nation exempt from all the laws every other business in Inglewood is subject to," said Danny Feingold, a spokesman for Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy.
Peter Kanelos, Wal-Mart's spokesman, said the project would comply with city and state environmental, fire and other building standards. Kanelos said his company sought the ballot measure because the Inglewood City Council voted to ban construction of "big-box" stores, like Wal-Mart's superstores.
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