MONROE, Wash. -- A newly-formed group is trying to either slow down or stop the development of the first Walmart in this town.
This week, the retail giant announced plans to put a 155,000 square-foot Walmart on the land behind Galaxy Theater on North Kelsey Street near Chain Lake Road.
The announcement comes about a week after the city council agreed to sell its land to a Seattle development company, Sabey Corp. The developer will buy the 24-acre piece of land from the city for $7.5 million. The city says it will use the money to pay for debt it owes to the County for a parcel of land across from the proposed Walmart site.
The Monroe Preservation Action Committee, formed by Monroe resident and business owner Stashka Lepera, is trying to persuade the city to limit the impact a box store could have on the community.
"If this store goes in, it will destroy small business in this town," she says. "We are not anti-Walmart, We are pro-Monroe."
MPAC had its first formal meeting Tuesday to rally the community against the city's plans. About 25 people attended.
Adrian Taylor Sr., owner of Ben Franklin Crafts in Monroe, is worried about the negative impact on his business with a Walmart just down the street.
"We could go out of business," he says. "We are a family-owned store and have been here for the past 35 years. We love this community and that is something a box store can't offer."
MPAC is also distributing fliers around Monroe advertising its next meeting, which is on Thursday, Jan. 6.
"We just want the city to consider what the impacts will be on our community," says Lepera.
In a press release, Walmart will provide 300 jobs and, according one estimate, up to $500,000 in sales tax revenue to the city annually.
The store will be designed to be environmentally sound, according to the company.
There are 49 Walmarts, three Sam's Club stores and one Walmart distribution center in Washington state.
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