Community Corner
Poll: Is A Moratorium on Large Retailers in Altadena Necessary?
Many residents who oppose the Walmart Neighborhood Market on Lincoln Ave. and Figueroa Dr. are also campaigning against something else in Altadena: new retailers occupying spaces over 15,000 square feet.
At the Altadena Town Council meeting Tuesday night, a number of residents spoke up to request that council members consider asking the L.A. County Board of Supervisors to enact a moratorium on all new retailers in Altadena that would occupy a space greater than 15,000 square feet. The group Save Altadena is spearheading the movement.
Save Altadena’s reasoning is posted on their website, and reads as follows:
Q: It seems the only way to protect the public interests and achieve balance between the desires of the Walmart Corporation and the needs of the Altadena residents is through a Conditional Use Permit, but a Conditional Use Permit is not required. What can we do?
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A: We can ask the Altadena Town Council to request the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors change the law, and we can make that request directly also. Basically we would ask the Board of Supervisors to declare a moratorium on all new occupancy permits or building permits for chain stores having a footprint of over 15,000 square feet while the county studies if Conditional use permits are needed to protect the public and to regulate hours of operation, truck routes, truck delivery hours, on site security, and so forth. If so they would then write a regulation protecting the public from these large impactful users, just as they have protected the public from things like kitchen remodels and car ports. SAVE ALTADENA will start a petition drive to the Board Of Supervisors for a moratorium beginning 18 July 2012.
Council members are not permitted to respond directly to public comment, but the Council did acknowledge that they heard all of the requests. The matter could be up for discussion at a future meeting.
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So, what do you think? Would you like to see a moratorium on all retailers in Altadena that occupy a space greater than 15,000 square feet? Or, is the request out of line?
Take our poll, and if you’d like to share more of your opinion, feel free to use the comment section below.
