The Humboldt Herald

Thank goodness Eureka residents didn’t fall for the big lie that a big-box will save us when Wal-Mart was poised back in ’99 to place their employee-be-damned monstrosity on the Balloon Track. You see, despite all this talk that one of these bloated “super stores” will pump-up our local digs, a Pennsylvania jury found employees were forced to work off the clock and through their lunch breaks.

Although it is unlikely that Eureka will be encumbered with a Wal-Mart anytime soon, Fortuna might not be so lucky. A while back there were reports that the retail giant was eyeing the site of the now closed Pacific Lumber mill in the Friendly City. Some Fortunans responded by creating a group called Fortuna First! which organized educational forums including a screening of the must-see movie Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. The issue must be in a lull since according to their website Fortuna First! hasn’t done much in the last year.

It’s been a while since anything has been in the news about plans for that site, aside from the suggestion by ex-Pacific Lumber president Robert Manne that we distrust those who fail to embrace the big boxes. “Fighting over the big-box issue is a red herring, a ruse,” he said. That was right before he got replaced by current CEO George O’Brien.

Back when Wal-Mart was trying to bust its way into Eureka, then-mayor (and current candidate for 4th district supervisor) Nancy Flemming was all for it. These days she agrees that it might not have been a good idea. Thankfully, 61% of Eureka residents were way ahead of her and voted against changing the zoning for the Balloon Track.

Today, we’re having a re-play of sorts, only now it’s about Home Depot. “It's sad the same issues seemingly settled seven years ago have returned with many of the same players involved,” Supervisor Bonnie Neely was quoted as saying last February.

And again, current zoning for the Balloon Track is what's keeping big-box #2 from further contaminating the site. It’ll be up to the Eureka City Council to decide on any zoning changes, which is why it’s important to VOTE November 7 and do what anti-big-box councilmember Chirs Kerrigan requested: “send me some council members that will agree with me.”

permalink I posted by Heraldo Riviera @ 2:07 PM