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Chico
Enterprise-Record (Chico, CA)
March 2, 2006
Section: Letters To The
Editor
Article ID:
3564171
Chico Enterprise-Record
Your Feb. 22 editorial, "Willows has no time for politics," contradicts your Aug. 21 editorial, "Homeownership starts with a job." The Feb. 22 piece condones Willows' approval of a Wal-Mart Super Center and the fact that more people shop at the Chico Wal-Mart than are attending City Council meetings. Shouldn't you encourage readers to think as well as shop? Your August editorial did that. It asked us to consider Wal-Mart's growing influence on the Chico job market. Your conclusion: Chico needs to "work to bring higher paying jobs to our area" and to "protect the ones we have." Wal-Mart does not meet those criteria. Fifty percent of super center space is discount grocery. Chico has Winco, Food Maxx and Costco. Each provides consumer choice and decent wages and benefits. A super center will close at least one of these stores, reducing the number of jobs offering the homeowner potential mentioned in your August editorial. Your February editorial describes Wal-Mart's wages as "pretty comparable with the rest of Chico." Is that acceptable? Does it encourage the "educated work force" proposed in your August editorial? Chico has a Wal-Mart. That isn't the issue. But if Wal-Mart wins approval, Chico will have two super centers within seven miles of each other, another 30 miles away in Willows and yet another 23 miles away in Oroville. Chico is at a crossroads. We need to make thoughtful decisions resulting in responsible growth, compatible with fair consumer prices and a strong middle class. — Heather Schlaff, Chico
(c) 2006 Chico
Enterprise-Record. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of
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