78,000 sf Walmart coming to SoWal [opening June15]

[scooterbug44]

I don't think large companies (like Wal-mart) doing self-serving things to save themselves money and bad publicity ............... that are also good for the planet in the long run make them "green."

Yes, because of the scale Wal-mart etc. operate on small changes can mean big results, but the motivating factor is always the bottom line, not Mother Earth. What many are realizing is that "green" practices make good fiscal sense.

To turn it around, if the changes mentioned can produce such big results, how big is their company's overall effect on our planet?

 

[LuciferSam]

I don't think large companies (like Wal-mart) doing self-serving things to save themselves money and bad publicity ............... that are also good for the planet in the long run make them "green."

Yes, because of the scale Wal-mart etc. operate on small changes can mean big results, but the motivating factor is always the bottom line, not Mother Earth. What many are realizing is that "green" practices make good fiscal sense.

To turn it around, if the changes mentioned can produce such big results, how big is their company's overall effect on our planet?

I couldn't care less about their motivating factor. Saving the environment is a technology problem that can only be solved with $$$$$. The best things for society come out of a rational self-interest. That's the bottom line.

 

[AlphaCrab]

I wish some of the talented, local, architects I know could provide simple, comparitive exterior wall plans of what a 78,000 square foot box looks like compared to similar structures in the area...

I don't even know what 78,000 looks like? Maybe it isn't that scary.

 

[scooterbug44]

Picture a 20' high and 280' long concrete block wall - then add some blue accents and a giant parking lot without any landscaping in front of it.

And don't forget the parking lot lights that light up the night sky and the sign with letters 2x the maximum size allowed.

(280'x280' = 78,400 sqr ft)

 

[Minnie]

If Wal-Mart does look like the one Scooterbug described you can blame your local officials.

Wal-Mart has gone into other areas and built buildings that do blend in and have low wattage lighting.

Hilton Head Island is an example. They have some of the strictest building codes in the nation and Wal-Mart had to comply. In fact the first time I drove by it I did not even recognize it as a Wal-Mart. They also have very strict codes on signage too.

The one recently built in Hamburg, NY is another example.

Donn Esmonde: Hamburg, Walmart lead the way : Donn Esmonde : The Buffalo News

The one on Hilton Head Island looks more like this one.

 

[LuciferSam]

I wish some of the talented, local, architects I know could provide simple, comparitive exterior wall plans of what a 78,000 square foot box looks like compared to similar structures in the area...

I don't even know what 78,000 looks like? Maybe it isn't that scary.

The ultimate irony: One of these architects gets a job helping to design it!

 

[scooterbug44]

Yes, we can get a pretty (in comparison) Wal-mart whose effect is muted.

All that needs to happen is for our elected officials to stand up to a developer with $$ money and St. Joe. :roll:

 

[destinscuba]

for a comparision

The WaterColor Publix is +/- 28,000 sqft.
The new South Walton Publix is 39,203 sqft.

From Wikipedia - Wal-Mart Supercenters vary from 98,000 square feet to 261,000 square feet, with an average of about 197,000 square feet

 

[LuciferSam]

I wonder what's the size of the one in Destin for comparison.

 

[Gidget]

An interesting editorial by Jared Diamond in the NYTimes yesterday, in regards to Wal-Mart as a green business.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/opinion/06diamond.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq= jared diamond&st=cse

As for the rest of us, we should get over the misimpression that American business cares only about immediate profits, and we should reward companies that work to keep the planet healthy.

I thought that was a very compelling article. Thanks for sharing.

G

PS I haven't had a Coke or Diet Coke in over 20 yrs. That's a product I could cheerfully see disappear but not likely. At least their practices are forward thinking even if their product is the ruination of many a tooth and pancreas.