Wednesday, October 18, 2006

Wal-Mart Supercenter grand opening

The new Wal-Mart Supercenter in Grand Forks held its grand opening today. Then again, Wal-Mart grocery stores have practically poisonous meat, offer nothing but junk food, and are filled with nearly retarded shoppers...at least that's what some of you think.

I for one am happy to see the project finally completed. Grand Forks shoppers now have one more choice available to them. Do you realize that there are now five grocery stores (Hugo's, Super One, SuperTarget, Sam's, Wal-Mart) just on the 32nd Avenue corridor? Wow.

20 comments:

GrandForksGuy said...

Gee...I guess great minds think alike, huh?

Coffee Guy said...

I've never qualified my description of Wal-Mart shoppers with a "nearly."

dwhitesock said...

Curious... When did streets and avenues and blvds, etc. become corridors? GFG, do you work with economic development or maybe for a politician?

Again, just curious.

Anonymous said...

Just saw the Project Runway finale shot at Olympus Fashion Week in NYC, they had a comment from the Wal-Mart guy. Hysterical!

I'm guessing he was in town buying ship loads of synthetic sweat pants from off shore sweat shops and stumbled in for free drinks.

Anonymous said...

When you really know the communities of G.F. and E.G.F., the amazing rich history of the region, and feel a deep connection to the area because of the achievements, and struggles, of your ancestors...it is soooo unfortunate that GFG and jgs have, what seems to be, the most popular blogs in town, and attempt to speak for the community.

Look at yourselves, you're a couple of putzes who think that the large expanses of black top parking lots and disgusting buildings that hammer at the soul of the great people and businesses that built this community are a good thing. Get a clue. Think about things. Take a long hard look at what the hell you stand for. No wonder the rich culture, community, and identity of these quaint historic towns is seemingly long gone.

You attack anons without attempting to understand their pov. It's not the anons. It's you. Look in the mirror; you champion Olive Gardens and Wal-Marts over the amazing families that built this community.

Shame on you guys.

GrandForksGuy said...

Curious... When did streets and avenues and blvds, etc. become corridors? GFG, do you work with economic development or maybe for a politician?

I don't see anything so unusual in calling the strip of land that runs along a major street or road a "corridor." It is a very common term in city planning. I've always been a big city planning freak. When I was younger, I would spend literally hours drawing maps (cute, huh?). If UND offered a city planning program, I'm reasonably sure that's the path I would have taken. So, you're gonna have to put up with my city planning terms for now, k? Don't hate me just because I have a good vocabulary.

GrandForksGuy said...

Anonymous, you're entitled to whatever opinion you want to have. Also, please don't claim I "attempt to speak for the community"...that's not true. This is my blog and it contains my opinions...I'm not trying to speak for anyone. If you don't like to read what I write, you're not being forced to come here.

Also, please don't assume that I favor sprawl, big box stores, or giant corporations over "mom and pop" stores...that's not the case. One of the ways I use this blog is to get out information about new or expanding businesses in the community. The sad fact is that most "new and expanding" businesses are not local or "mom and pop" operations. So, if one of the intents of this blog is to cover the local business community, why would you assume that I would shy away from mentioning a story about Wal-Mart or the Olive Garden just because those businesses are not locally owned? I carry stories about both types of businesses...local and non-local. Still, if you've read this blog for any period of time, you will know that I always have posts about local businesses whenever there is news about them. Look through the archives...you'll see posts about Dakota Harvest, Pourpora, Joe Black's, etc. Like I said, I don't favor non-local over local businesses. The fact of the matter is that most news stories relating to the business community are inherently about non-local businesses.

Please don't claim that I don't fully understand or appreciate the rich history of this city. I have lived in this area all of my life and I have a keen familiarity with our local history...far more than most residents.

GrandForksGuy said...

BTW, this will be the last post to even mention Wal-Mart for quite some time. This topic seems to be far too controversial.

Anonymous said...

GFG and JGS,

I may not always agree with your positions or choice of content, but you tend to be considerate–and even better, witty–in your responses.

However, Anon. does make a good point about postings from frequent bloggers who punctuate their responses with insults that serve no purpose but to bully.

Anonymous said...

I'm the big, bad, anon.

Try this concept...Don't shop at these soul suckers. Less soul-suckers...more mom and pops.

Pretty simple concept.

C. Y. said...

Would this be the "mom & pops" that paid minimum wage and no benefits??

Coffee Guy said...

I'm in favor of sprawl and big box stores, both signs of economic growth.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
I'm the big, bad, anon.

No, you're not. Surprisingly Anons are the most well behaved. The "bads" I refer to always identify themselves

Anonymous said...

I hate Wal-Mart and everything they stand for, but I believe small retailers have mostly themselves to blame. They have refused to educate themselves in ways that make them more competitive. They haven't put profits back into their business, to improve infrastructure and service, or to source new and innovative new products. Yetm they expect customers to patronize them nonetheless.

The Wal-Marts of the world didn't always compete soley on price, they were small once too.

Anonymous said...

I am sick and tired of people that bash Wal-Mart. My family loves okra and we can finally get it at a store instead ordering it from GFG. In the 2 years I have lived here it was nice to see that. Having lived in towns that had them before, it really didn't hurt other stores. People will still go to other stores for sale items and things that other stores don't have.

Anonymous said...

You attack anons without attempting to understand their pov. It's not the anons. It's you. Look in the mirror; you champion Olive Gardens and Wal-Marts over the amazing families that built this community.,

That was part of what I posted earlier. I was completely wrong. I now feel like such an idiot. I was just being a big baby and whining about stuff I don't know anything about.

Can you all forgive me for being such a fool?

GrandForksGuy said...

Gee, anonymous...you're no fool. We're all entitled to our own opinions, aren't we? Don't worry about it, ok? ::group hug::

Anonymous said...

Ahhh...evidence of the pitfalls of posting under anon. I'm the big, bad anon. Not that happy-ass above.

Wal-Marts and Olve Gardens still suck.

Anonymous said...

Look at yourselves, you're a couple of putzes who think that the large expanses of black top parking lots and disgusting buildings that hammer at the soul of the great people and businesses that built this community are a good thing. Get a clue. Think about things. Take a long hard look at what the hell you stand for. No wonder the rich culture, community, and identity of these quaint historic towns is seemingly long gone.

AGREED

You do attempt to speak for the community, and you write like a 12 year-old too.

Jeni.Ann said...

"Take a long hard look at what the hell you stand for. No wonder the rich culture, community, and identity of these quaint historic towns is seemingly long gone."

I'm sorry, but what exactly are we talking about when you say rich culture when referring to Grand Forks? And how does this figure in to commercial development outside of the historic section of Grand Forks?

When I arrived here in 1978, Columbia Mall was out in the countryside. This alone demonstrates that all of the commerical and residential development in the south and west sections of Grand Forks are modern and have nothing to do with the "identity of... quaint historic towns."