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Civic Group Opposes Wal-Mart On Gandy

Al Steenson, President of Gandy Civic Association, pleads for everyone to work together at the city of Tampa, expressway authority, DOT, and Hillsborough County holding a special public meeting at Jan K. Platt Regional Library.

Tribune photo by ROBERT BURKE

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By JAMIE PILARCZYK

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 6, 2008

GANDY/SUN BAY SOUTH - Mildred McFadden has lived on Pearl Avenue since 1960. She loves the tree-lined street, her generous lot and the community.

The traffic, though, is something she could live without.

McFadden's house sits on a stretch between Lois Avenue and Dale Mabry Highway that has become a favorite cut-through for drivers avoiding Gandy Boulevard.

"I think everyone in Tampa knows where Pearl Avenue is," McFadden said during a July 29 public meeting on the ongoing Gandy widening project. "I'm really, really tired of the traffic."

With a Wal-Mart Supercenter set to open in her neighborhood, McFadden worries the 24-hour store will bring traffic and possibly crime.

"I hope Wal-Mart dies and goes away," McFadden said.

She joined others in the Gandy/Sun Bay South Civic Association in taking a formal stand against the Wal-Mart project at the association's July meeting.

The retail giant plans a 146,000-square-foot store on about 13 acres at Gandy and Lois. It will include groceries, general merchandise, a pharmacy and garden center.

The property is zoned commercial, so no public hearings were required.

"Personally, I couldn't care less whose name is on the building," said association President Al Steenson. "When you put a building of that size on a parcel that size, you're going to have traffic issues."

Wal-Mart's request for beer and wine sales has been postponed until the company resolves traffic issues with the Florida Department of Transportation. Wal-Mart wants access to the store from Gandy and Lois.

Spokeswoman Quenta Vettel said the company will present the final site plan to city staff for approval once traffic issues are finalized and will share the site plan with the civic association. It hopes to begin construction in the fall.

"We recognize there are issues there with Gandy and such, and we hope to get those resolved," Vettel said.

The civic group's opposition carries weight only if Wal-Mart's traffic issues require a public hearing, board member Mike Hursey said. But neighbors want the city to know how they feel.

"I don't think the city will be able to control the traffic," Hursey said. "Who's going to be accountable if Wal-Mart doesn't succeed in controlling it? Or does the burden fall on the community who has to live with it?"

Reporter Jamie Pilarczyk can be reached at (813) 259-7661 or jpilarczyk@tampatrib.com.

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