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 Business News | October 2006 
Wal-Mart Wins Approval for Store in Baja Calif. Sur
 El Universal
Cabo San Lucas, B.C.S. - Opponents of Wal-Mart´s plan to build a store in the picturesque resort town of Cabo San Lucas vowed to continue demonstrations after the retail giant won preliminary approval for the outlet after an almost two-year battle.
The approval brings Wal- Mart, Mexico´s largest retailer, a step closer to completing its campaign to open stores in all 31 states. Baja California Sur is the only state without a Wal-Mart.
The Los Cabos city council voted unanimously Tuesday to give conditional approval for the store, requiring it to be non-intrusive, pass environmental studies and not excessively affect traffic in this fishing and resort town of about 80,000 at the tip of the Baja California Peninsula.
But residents and shopkeepers on Wednesday said they would continue fighting Wal-Mart´s arrival. They fear the store - first proposed, and rejected, at a site near the middle of the city - could harm the town´s laid-back atmosphere, where sports fishermen and tourists mix easily with locals on the narrow streets.
"If we have to hold demonstrations, we´ll do it, and if it comes to that, block some of the access roads" to Cabo San Lucas, Sebastian Álvarez, leader of The Union of Organized Businesses, a group of 350 small shopkeepers said.
"We are very angry that they´re favoring such a big company, without realizing that this is going to affect the people who live here, the small businesses, in a big way," Álvarez said. "The economic impact is going to be fatal, and that has been proven in many parts of the world."
Mayor Luis Armando Díaz, who governs both Cabo San Lucas and its twin city, San José del Cabo, said he believes the city council acted correctly in voting to give preliminary approval.
"I think we balanced out the (competing) interests," said Díaz, noting that two years ago, the city rejected a plan for a Wal-Mart store near the center of Cabo San Lucas.
Díaz also said Wal-Mart may have to build a highway overpass at the new site to handle the increased traffic. Some worry the overpass could replace the trademark stone arch - a rock formation that reaches into the sea - as the first view people have when driving into the city.
Wal-Mart de México is no stranger to protests. In 2004, another Wal-Mart-owned discount store opened less than a kilometer from the ancient temples of Teotihuacán, just north of Mexico City, despite months of protests by some residents who claimed the sprawling complex was an insult to Mexican culture.
On Wednesday, Wal-Mart de México spokesman Antonio Ocarranza said the company is "convinced that we have something valuable to offer Baja California Sur," adding, "our contribution to the community will be positive."
He said Wal-Mart would "integrate into our development plans anything we need to, to answer the concerns of the city council," and indicated the store would likely be part of a mall.
Regarding the fears expressed by small business owners, Ocarranza said: "We not only generate benefits for our customers, but also for businesses, who benefit from the traffic generated by our firm."
There are already Home Depot and CostCo outlets on the highway near the proposed site, but neither has an overpass and it´s unclear whether the Wal-Mart store will be larger than those stores.
Wal-Mart must still submit environmental impact and water studies before city officials grant any building permits. The proposed site is next to a dry riverbed that captures much of the area´s sparse rains.
"We have asked them for an architectural design that won´t severely impact the traditional style of the area," Díaz added.
But Álvarez said that in any form, the big-box store will finish off the small-shop atmosphere, the city´s economic mainstay.
"I think that the councilmen haven´t yet realized that (Wal-Mart) will, in less than a year, cause the disappearance of the small stores that have contributed so much to the development of this area," he said.
Álvarez said that isn´t going to happen in Cabo San Lucas without a fight. "Los Cabos isn´t Mexico City," he said. "I think this is just starting, and we´re going to get tough." |
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