[Vision2020] Final Questions for MCA General Meeting

[joekc at adelphia.net]

Below are the final questions for the MCA General Meeting tomorrow night on Wal-Mart and the local economy. Members of the audience will be invited to ask questions, as well, so I encourage you all to attend.

The forum is free and open to the general public and will be held Monday, January 9th at 7:00 pm at the 1912 Center on Third Street in Moscow. It is intended to provide information to the general public and the MCA invites all members of the community to attend. Our panelists represent a broad range of viewpoints and expertise: Andrew Crapuchettes, Stephen Cooke, Jeff Harkins, and B.J. Swanson.

Questions:

Can’t the City Council ‘just say no’ to Wal-Mart on the grounds that we don’t want Moscow to look like every other shapeless blob of suburbia? In other words, is it legal for a city to approve or deny requests based on a policy of preserving its distinctive character?

What has happened to communities similar to Moscow when Super Wal-Marts have been built there? What has been the effect on the number and variety of businesses in that town, and the number and variety of businesses in neighboring towns? What has been the net impact on employment?

How many people does Moscow Wal-Mart employ (full and part-time)?  Currently, what percentage of those people receives public assistance in some form, through Medicaid, Healthy Connections, WIC, or other similar public assistance programs?
What are the estimated sales taxes generated by the store annually? What net gain in sales tax could Moscow expect should a Wal-Mart Super Center locate in our town? How would a Wal-Mart Super Center affect property taxes?

Please define what an economic ‘zero sum game’ is.  Since economic development isn’t a zero sum game, and we can expect a Super Wal-Mart to draw shoppers from surrounding communities, what sort of economic ripple effects should we expect from a Super Wal-Mart?  How much would we potentially miss (and are we missing from stores like Home Depot in Lewiston) if we didn’t get it but Pullman did?