LETTER: The Walmart Debate Continues

PRO: South Walton shouldn’t be a millionaire’s club

We have lived here since ’96 and are very happy with the way that South Walton has progressed. The Planning and Zoning Department and the Board of County Commissioners have both done a great job of channeling the growth (and the many doers, both public and private) that has made this a better community.
We are proud of our new hospital, schools, college, roads, fire and rescue protection, as well as the new library and government center on Hwy. 331.

We have come a long way.
We are also thrilled to finally be getting our own Walmart. I think the only problem some people have with Walmart is that it isn't Nieman Marcus.

It kinda takes a little buff off of the zip code by making the area a little more affordable for the average guy, who might then be able to sustainably live here. And then there goes the neighborhood... Millionaires only please!
But if you are not an overpriced grocery, drug or hardware store, what is your problem?
This isn't a fast food chain that is going to close down your local deli. The big boxes aren't the problem. Summer traffic is the problem.
Do we want a community only designed for tourists and elites, at the expense of everyone else?

Lee Coleman
Santa Rosa Beach

CON: Walmart will forever scar beautiful South Walton

In 1994, our family built a home in a golf course community in Louisville, Ky. We specifically chose this location because there was no development — no gas station, no grocery store, etc.

We wanted to live away from all the traffic and congestion and feel a sense of peace when we came home from work.

Ten years later, when we decided to sell our home and move to this wonderful paradise, the local Fox station did a story about the horrible traffic mess that was created by the addition of shopping centers filled with every store imaginable.

In fact, the day after that story aired, a prospective buyer for our home cancelled her appointment. Today, that same area has added hospitals, hotels, condominiums, apartments, etc.

The sense of peace we first felt is now a thing of the past, never to return.

Our decision to move here was, once again, based on the desire to live in a quiet, peaceful community without the necessity of convenience.

We did not feel the need to have fast food restaurants and department stores at our front door. But apparently, the Walton County Commissioners have seen fit to alter our landscape and have approved a Walmart store in South Walton.

It doesn't seem to matter that we already have three Walmarts within reasonable driving distance or that our year-round population is shrinking, evidenced by all the foreclosures and short sales.

With a Walmart will come much more development. I've already heard that this St. Joe development will also have two large retail stores and an assisted living facility. There has also been talk of a Fudpucker's by Sugar Drive.

The beautiful forests we get to see while we're driving toward Panama City will be replaced by businesses and empty storefronts. All you have to do is drive into Destin and see all the empty buildings.

If we can't keep what we have filled, why do we need more? I haven't even touched on the potential drainage problems that can result from the runoff coming from the additional parking facilities.

Those that argue that these new businesses will bring jobs seem to forget the low hourly wages that come with them. Employees of these businesses will be unable to find reasonable rentals — just as current retail and restaurant employees do now. If these jobs were so valuable, why do so many of our local businesses bring in workers from Eastern Europe? Additionally, many of these employees drive an hour each way to work due to high rents in South Walton and Destin.

Development is inevitable. It is not a bad thing if it is well thought out, and politics and greed are not the ultimate motivation. Out-of-control development is one of the major reasons our real estate market collapsed in our area.

I've read several articles that have pointed to other cities where there are more controls on development and how these cities have not suffered in these down times as we have. (I can hear the screams coming from the offices of the Freedom newspapers!).

It is difficult for me to believe that most of the people who moved to South Walton did so for reasons other than its beauty.

That  beauty will be forever marred by the presence of a Walmart.

Sheila Wachsman is a Santa Rosa Beach resident.

To read the original story, click here.