Comment of the Day: Why They’re Bringing Walmart to the West End

COMMENT OF THE DAY: WHY THEY’RE BRINGING WALMART TO THE WEST END “I once wrote a frustrated letter to Wal-Mart’s corporate office in Arkansas begging for a better store to serve the Inner Loop than what was available on S. Post Oak and 610. It may very well have come off as begging. Had they ever followed up with me about the particular issue, I almost certainly would have begged for the store. And had they come to my door, I’d have groveled at their feet in admiration of their corporate largess and magnaminity, even.” [TheNiche, commenting on West End Walmart Development 380 Agreement Gets City Council OK]

17 Comment

  • So excited for this Walmart! It’s going to be AWESOME. No more long drives to get to my favorite store.

  • Exactly! Wal-Mart living is good living.

  • i think that’s an important thing that people continue to ignore. we all spend a ton of money at wal-mart but due to thier locations we often end up spending our money in distant ‘burbs.

    I for one praise the opportunity to do more of my spending here in houston and keep the money local. the ‘burbs leach off us enough as it is.

    However, i hope it’s not the same case as the target off sawyer where everything is priced slightly more here in town or i’ll still be spending my money out there.

  • You all do realize that they are opening a Walmart at 45 and Crosstimbers this October and are currently building a Walmart at Silber and I-10? The idea that the community needs a Walmart at Yale and I-10 in addition to these other stores is just completely ridiculous. The south and east side needs Walmart. They hardly have any stores. Why doesn’t the City throw a few million at a developer to make that happen instead of throwing millions at a developer to put a Walmart where it isn’t wanted and isn’t needed?

  • Atta boy, Yale St!

    Now that we’ve finished venting about the complete lack of hike and bike trails in houston, the poor transportation infrastructure and the absence of pedestrian friendliness, let’s now bitch about a Wal Mart within walking distance when we can all fire up the cars and drive 10 freeway miles to another.

    Go Houston!

  • A Wal-Mart located in the eastern half of the Inner Loop would be wonderful. I’d patronize it.

    As for the Crosstimbers and Silber locations, those are not nearly as convenient as Yale Street. I’d have to go out of my way to get to those other locations.

    Having said that, rumors have circulated for some time that Macy’s might be willing to part with its distribution center at I-45 and Lockwood; if so, hopefully Wal-Mart takes a close look at that. That would mean that I could walk to Wal-Mart!

  • Umm….just out of curiosity, since the big draw of Wal-Mart seems to be the opportunity to buy large quantities of merchandise for low prices, does this mean all Wal-Mart shoppers in the vicinity will NOT use their vehicles and instead stagger home laden like pack mules? Brave souls indeed, especially in the burning heat of the day from late May-September. If this is the case, why is so much area slated for parking? I do enjoy a stroll to the local watering hole some evenings, but I’m not carrying anything back(externally anyway) and if any mischief arose, I’d certainly be able to run.

    No offense to those who will walk to the store, but this pervasive image of Heights residents sauntering out like Dagwood Bumstead on one of Blondie’s shopping trips and walking 6-8 blocks home is a bit unrealistic.

  • the only people i’ve ever seen walking in the west end are drunks looking for their cars and illegals.

  • I can’t speak for Heights residents, but I live precisely one kilometer (0.6 mi.) from the entrance of Battle Kroger, and I usually walk there and back for groceries, usally between 8:30PM and 10:00PM. Add up all the milling about the store, and it’s probably close to a 1.75-mile round-trip hike. And I buy a lot of canned and bottled items, so it’s not a light load.

    I’ve only been assailed once, doing this, by stray kittens once on my way back home. I set my stuff down on the sidewalk and played with them for a short while. It was adorable. All muggers should seek to emulate kittens!

  • Since the lower income individuals that proponents said would have benefited and walked to the Walmart are having their apartments torn down to build the Walmart, most will be walking from farther away and taking the shopping carts home to carry their stuff.

  • That would be a problem for me; trying to carry groceries and a handful of stray kittens home at the same time.

  • I walk to the grocery store all the time. It’s about 1/2 a mile from my house. I’m too lazy to start up the car unless it’s super hot or raining. If you go often enough you don’t have to carry much.

  • Wal-Mart brings an additional 8k-10k a day to the neighborhood along with added crime, traffic jams, home invasions…happy shopping!

  • I meant 8k-10 cars a day, in previous post.

  • A closer Wal-Mart reduces the total amount of miles driven to the next furthest Wal-Mart, thereby reducing citywide traffic; Wal-Mart causes crime like flies cause garbage.

    I will quite thoroughly enjoy my shopping experience. Thank you.

  • What he meant was Wal Mart causes CRYING, not crime. There’s plenty of proof of that.

  • Damn. Talk about Stockholm syndrome. That’s a lot of groveling just to avoid patronizing other stores.