Bid for Big Wal-Mart Turns
Out Dozens for Planning Meeting

The St. Mary's County Commissioners conference room was used on Monday, Aug, 23, 2004, for a final hearing by the Planning Commission for the expansion of Wal Mart located on Rt. 235 in California.   The room used for all such public hearings is so small, that hallways, adjacent offices and about everything but the restrooms were used to deposit the public with little TV monitors set up around for the citizens to be able to see the presentation and listen to speakers.  The board shown above was used to explain the proposal to the Planning Commission but the room was full of people behind it who couldn't see anything.  In past years, when large audiences were expected for hearings, the county arranged to use larger rooms, including circuit courtrooms and school auditoriums. ST. MARY'S TODAY photo

These International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers showed up on their luxury bus in Leonardtown, fresh from their conference center and resort in Hollywood.  They said they were in attendance to oppose Wal Mart due to the fact that the employees of the store were non-union.  The union members generally are not citizens of St. Mary's County but like to push for union membership at every opportunity. ST. MARY'S TODAY photo

LEONARDTOWN --- The application for Wal Mart to expand it's present store on Rt. 235 to a new Super Wal*Mart brought out a huge crowd on Monday night at the regular meeting of the St. Mary's County Planning Commission.

There were so many people at the meeting, on both sides of the issue, that county staffers set up chairs in the hallway, in the public information officer's suite of offices and all the way out to the front door of the Leonard Hall Governmental Center.  Rather than planning in advance for a large crowd, which was expected, the county took a pass on holding the public meeting at the county's airport terminal building.  The terminal building is available for large meetings due to the fact that the county has been unable to attract any airlines to give regional commuter service to the airport, which is posted with large signs stating that it is a regional airport.

With no airline customers, the terminal has been in operation for four years without a single flight ever scheduled.

The Planning Commission meeting was also attended by a bus load of International Machinist Union members who were brought in from the union's Placid Harbor conference center and resort located in Hollywood, Maryland.

Union members told ST. MARY'S TODAY that they were there to protest the larger store due to the fact that the large retailer is a non-union operation.

Wal-Mart supporters have been filling local newspapers with letters of support while some opposed to the store have expressed their views.     The Planning Commission will make it's reccomendation to the Board of Commissioners within 4 weeks. 

Photos and more on this story coming up in the print edition this coming weekend and online.