Get more info on where to sign the ASI: Call 461 3710 or go to the Initiative page.

The Atascadero Shield Initiative

With the urging from many of you, OWM felt the time was right to go on the offensive.

The "Atascadero Shield Initiative" is designed to do just that, "shield" the General Plan, small-town character and economic vitality of Atascadero from predatory outside corporations and developers who want to make Atascadero over in their vision of future growth.

As we have always maintained and as so many of you have voiced, we believe the community should have the right to envision our own future and determine the pace, size and scale of development. What we are proposing are minimal community standards to guide reasonable growth.

We can expect that Wal-Mart/Rottman Group will throw a king's ransom into the fray to counter our initiative. But, we are confidant that Atascaderans can not be bought. When the rubber hits the road, we believe that the voters of Atascadero will choose to be Citizens first and consumers second.

Click here to read the initiative and learn more . . .

How Big Is Big?

Many of the negative impacts that big-box retailers have on communities and local economies are directly related to the size of their stores:

Diminished competition—The bigger the store, the bigger the bite it will take out of the local economy. Wal-Mart's U.S. stores, for example, annually average $418 sales per square foot (Wal-Mart 2005 Annual Report), meaning a 200,000-square-foot supercenter is designed to capture $84 million each year. Most communities, even fast-growing areas, cannot absorb a store of that scale without severe revenue losses to existing businesses, including both locally owned stores and competing supermarkets and shopping centers.

As these businesses contract and close, residents are left with fewer choices and less competition. Some towns and neigh- borhoods now depend on a single big-box store for certain goods. Evidence suggests that these retailers may raise prices once they attain a dominant market position.

Heavier Traffic—The larger the store, the larger the geographic region from which it pulls customers and the higher the traffic counts. A 200,000-square-foot superstore typically generates more than 10,000 car trips on weekdays and more on Saturdays.

Atascadero City Council Takes a Stand, Supercenter on Hold

Oppose Wal-Mart thanks all the residents of Atascadero for caring so much about the future of our city, and who have voluntarily stepped forward in so many ways. Pat yourselves on the back for participating in Oppose Wal-Mart all these months and for being part of the 62.5 percent of those who said they want to preserve the General Plan at the Tuesday, 10/23 City Council Meeting and Special City Council meeting Monday, 10/29 night's success.

Click to read more . . .

OPPOSE WAL-MART MISSION STATEMENT

"Keep Atascadero Wal-Mart Free!!!"

Oppose Wal-Mart (OWM) is an all volunteer, locally funded, grass-roots organization made up of women and men, young and old, union and non-union, Democrats, Republicans, Greens and Independents from all occupations.

Our primary mission is to protect our city and way of life. OWM encourages good economic development, which is sustainable, diverse, pedestrian and environmentally friendly, a prosperous and successful town where we can raise our children in an environment without unmanageable traffic, noise, and LA style urbanization. Supercenters are bad economic development that we believe would change our city's character forever.

We are all neighbors who may have differences in our vision for the future of Atascadero, but what binds us together is more than what divides us. The proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter is dividing us!

OWM has always put Atascadero first. That is what is most important. If everything Wal-Mart and its supporters say is TRUE, we world not oppose the supercenter project. However, in our search for what it would really mean if a Wal-Mart Supercenter came to town, we discovered many independent and academic studies that revealed the reality versus the rhetoric of Wal-Marts arguments. Those studies and the information are on this website. Moreover, these studies convinced us that a supercenter is just not good economic development for Atascadero. We are, and have always said that OWM is for good economic development at the Annex that provides a "Triple bottom line!"—a positive return on investment for the city, developer and the community.

• 'Lifestyle Centers' Make Shopping Fashionable
• Chula Vista 'Lifestyle Center' Trumps Mall

The supercenter that WalMart has proposed is huge and totally out of scale with Atascadero. Click the image below to see how big it will be in our city.

Join your neighbors and help us keep Atascadero a great place to live. Click Here to learn more about what you can do. If you'd like to Donate, Click Here.

• Bid to recall Atascadero city council members is dropped

• The case against Wal-Mart
• Slow Growing
• Tom O'Malley exposed
• Oppose Wal-Mart responds to community
• Atascadero, Ca. Wal-Mart Suffers Early Halloween Trick
• Wal-Mart defeated by Atascadero City Council
• Wal-Mart contests local property taxes
• Wal-Mart gets worst rating possible from Consumers Reports
• Wal-Mart back with new plan
• Out in the open
• Atascadero to pursue consultant on growth
• Money Makes It Happen
• Wal-Mart eyes bigger Paso store
• Unpaid Teens Bag Groceries for Wal-Mart
• Wal-Mart Faces Blast From Human Rights Group
• Two Great Films About Wal-Mart
• Former Wal-Mart Worker Blows Whistle on Company Surveillance Operation, Spying of Critics
• Ex-Wal-Mart Worker Admits To Spy Campaign
• Easy Choice Cor Oppose Wal-Mart Supporters
• Supercenters Mirror Bad Economic Development
• Wal-Mart Withdraws Application; Supercenter Still In The Works
• Wal-Mart Not Giving Up On Atascadero

We've all heard them, but none of them are true. We have the facts behind the myths that Wal-Mart would like you to believe:

		Wal-Mart will bring more jobs to our community.
		Wal-Mart will bring more money to our community.
		Wal-Mart has the lowest prices.
		Wal-Mart Casts Itself as a Good Corporate Citizen.
		Wal-Mart cares about its employees.

Click Here to learn the truth.

Take a look at how huge the proposed Wal-Mart building site will be compared to the rest of Atascadero. We think you'll be shocked. Click Here to learn more.

Local elections are key to keeping Atasacadero Wal-Mart free. Click Here to learn where the candidates stand on this important issue and when you can cast a vote that counts.

Click Here to find online resources and information about Wal-Mart and its impact on cities like Atascadero.

Hundreds of communities around the country have struggled to keep the character of their towns intact and Wal-Mart free. Click Here to learn more about them and how many of them have won.

Sprawl-Busters
An International Clearinghouse on Big Box Anti-Sprawl Information.