Wal-Mart Watching Derby Sewer Vote And Illuzzi Bill

We need a Walmart or some kind of store other than the ones downtown, where we can buy socks or underwear and pay a decent price, not an over-inflated price. The jobs around here are basically low-paying and most people can't afford the high prices these so called area merchants charge. I say KUDOS to having a walmart in the area.

i agree we need walmart the seniors CAN NOT aford to shop in the small stores the prices are way to high beside that we need the jobs it will bring

Dean wrote:

I would say that most definetly it will help. Drive down to Littleton and look in the parking lot of any business, they are filled with green license plates.

Most of the stuff people are talking about purchasing at Walmart can be obtained over the internet from many online retailers at prices just as low as Walmart and of better quality.

Judging from the people I've seen rolling out of the cars with the green license plates in Littleton, may I would suggest a few diet centers and health spas for the NEK instead of a Walmart.

Happy to see Walmart getting a few more supporters. Bonehead, nice comment, perhaps we could those beside the methadone clinic :)

Robert J wrote:

So Walmart is the future of Vermont? Chittenden county only has one and it has extremely low gross sales for the population it serves. St A is gonna be a bust as well. They put them up to be a thorn in the local stores side, but pale in sales comparison to Walmarts countrywide.
Walmart drives down wages for crappy jobs, drives out competition (not that there is much) and sells Chinese garbage. I used to work for them (Sam's) until I wised up.
What they need is more than one local competitor, but screw sending our dollars to the commies.

It is pretty hard to drive down the wages in an area that only pays minimum wage to begin with.

There will always be people who wouldn't shop in Walmarts and prefer the exclusive. For every day items Walmarts is a treasure. Made in China, yes, but if it is safe, I'm going to shop where I can get the most for my $$$. The Walmarts who sell produce in their food stores use locally produced items and sell them much cheaper then supermarkets because they don't have to pass along the shipping cost. The gripers have agendas they try to force on others. They would cut off their nose to spite their face. Many years ago I lived in an area where we had Caldors and K Mart. We also had Swezeys Dept. store. Swezeys carried really good brands and you paid for the brand name. People who couldn't afford their clothes etc, went for a special item for graduations, weddings, dates, gifts, etc. Every day items like clothes, curtains, shoes, stationary, school items we bought at the "box" store. The people who worked in the stores were locals. I try to spend my money wisely. I, for one, would probably be in the Walmart three times a week (if only to walk around "window shopping").

What I love is that so many people that aren'nt from the area, certain people from Newport don't want Walmart coming but after nearly 40 years in VT if areas like Newport don't get more stores like the Walmart we desperately need in here then you might as well start moving out of VT. The times we are living in, there are too many people who are trying to just survive on Nothing. Walmart gives them the ability to NOT have to move there families out of VT where's it's worse then here. VT has too many COMPLAINERS. Wake up you complain about not having work then you complain more that a store that will bring in jobs like walmart will hurt the area. Stop being hypocrites. Those who want Walmart coming into the area are very wise people and care about the Economics and Bilogical Family situations that are occuring here in Newport and in VT. I haven't seen 1 walmart have to shut down. Those who want to complpain about Walmart coming in you better hope that if you have children and or grandchildren that they dont hear it, since your tells them VT and Esp. Newport, VT isn't worth living in. There will alaways be pros and cons to every situation its all in how you handle a situation, positivity bring positive results.COM PLAINING GETS YOU NOWHERE. COMPLAINERS ONLY WANT EVERYONE ELSE TO FEEL AS BAD AS THEY DO.
From Newport,VT

People need to wakeup... you have to drive an hour to get to a store where you actually buy something. Yes there are some stores in Newport but their prices are so high that you STILL can't buy anything. The Newport area will NEVER be a town with high end shopping like the Burlington area but it would be very nice to have some basic shopping and not have to spend 30 dollars to drive there… If there are people out there who think the Newport area is cute and special then you need to hear what people outside of the area REALLY think, its not pretty!!!!

Why do all these people from other areas feel that they can speak for people who live in the Newport area.Every one I know,[except the high priced store owners]want a big box store in the area. I and many others are tired of driving one to two hours to buy affordable products.How many of those opposing from afar have to buy their underwear at the local hardware store?

What this argument really comes down to, is what the residents of the area feel is appropriate. With gas prices having hit $4 a gallon (and luckily have dropped somewhat since then, hopefully in the long run), what low wage-earner wants to drive over an hour to Littleton just to do basic shopping? It makes perfect sense to have a low-priced store nearby.

To lend equal support to the opposite argument (since I don't live in the NEK, I don't want to lean one way or the other), this being Vermont and the most preserved part of the state at that, the store needs to be built on a level that fits its location. A Williston-size store is inappropriate; one about Rutland's size seems about right for Newport. Let's even make it more Vermont-ingenious and make Wal-Mart part of a shopping plaza that incorporates other stores to guarantee good use of the parking lot land. To top it off, Wal-Mart themselves should take the initiative (which I know they won't, but let's be ideal here) to make the most environmentally-friendly store they have ever built, from the floor to the roof, which is right up Vermont's alley. If Wal-Mart comes into Newport like this, it could generate the additional business in the area that others have mentioned it would, along with positive publicity for the area (which would eventually draw more tourist dollars to a part of the state that could use them).

Again, though, it comes down to what the residents want. As a Vermont resident I advocate for RESPONSIBLE development statewide. The Williston big-box mess works for the populous Burlington area, but the plaza in Rutland where Wal-Mart sits (co-anchored with Price Chopper) there would do well in many other parts of the state. I encourage the people of the NEK to voice their opinions whenever possible to keep any development on their level, and on THEIR terms.

Dean wrote:

I would say that most definetly it will help. Drive down to Littleton and look in the parking lot of any business, they are filled with green license plates. Sure some are going for no tax. But personally I will gladly pay 6% to not have to drive 3 hours. Not just Walmart will come, we will gain resturants and other business, imagine being able to buy clothes without having to worry about what you may run into on main street.
Here is a good excersise, go up to Magog QC, walk down main street on a Saturday, then drive the 30 miles south and walk down main in Newport.(if you dare)
It is about more than Walmart, it is about taking our community out of the 40's and getting at least to the 80's. I am all for small towns and small town values, and we can preserve them, and that is where we need to fight, not against Walmart.

Newport needs to advertise in Eastern Townships (Sherbrooke, Magog...) Magog has been full of people long before Walmart came here. Personnally I've been going to Derby several times to the Price Chopper. Meats and milk products are half price compare to Canada's. Do you need a Walmart? Not sure it would be good for Local economy but it would certainly be good for us as long as our dollar is over 0.87$ US. Personnally, I don't really care about our local economy when I can save 50%. I just try not to buy to much Chinese crap. USA is OK for me!

i would love to have a walart in derby because its either i travel a hour to nh or i travel an hour and a half to berlin, vt either one takes a lot of gas and in the end your paying more for gas then what you get at walmart and not to mention you get back later then what you would like to so im definitly for walmart

Joe wrote:

<quoted text>
Newport's economy was devastated long before a Wal-Mart was contemplated for Derby.
The only way the economy, in this area, can go is up.

i totally agree 100% you defentaly cant ruin newports economy because newport sucks ass

We need a wallmart in derby ,because we cannot afford ace products @ poulin lumber or anything @ pick and shove it.