Rumor: Walmart Eyeing Hertel/Elmwood Corner

That stretch of Elmwood is a craphole, might as well go full craphole with wal-mart. The only good is that maybe it'll spur something/anything on the SW corner.

Cue anti-corporate anti-Walmart freakout in 3...2...1....

Wal-Mart sucks but something in that area is better than nothing. The only thing I don't like is that one of my favorite buildings in buffalo will be knocked down to build this Wal-Mart. The Acme Nipple Co., it's not the heritage of the building so much as the name... I love that name. Whenever I am back in Buffalo with someone new I enjoy showing them that sign.

Typically thousands of people apply for the several hundred jobs Walmart offers in a new store. Terrible job? No more terrible than any other low-end retail job. And any job is better than a lifetime of doing nothing but collecting welfare.

And the store, with some nice landscaping, will look a lot better than the junk that's there.

A huge net win for the area.

There's a grouping of historic industrial buildings there, Acme Nipple Factory, I believe.

Their produce is actually better than Tops--its always fresher. It's a pretty good place to shop for groceries.

There are in fact very nice, urban Walmarts in other U.S. cities. Not that I expect they'll bother with anything other than their crappy suburban model @ this location. Oh well.

If this actually gets built, I hope the sight plan gets submitted after the new zoning ordinance is adopted by the Common Council. Even though this corner is far from walkable, how incredible would it be if Walmart was the progenitor of a denser, mixed-use node at this intersection (i.e. http://bit.ly/UchXqG) instead of reinforcing an already automobile-centric part of the city.

Wal-Mart is good for low-income residents. Good, safe products at reasonable prices. If you choose to spend your money elsewhere, great; don't deny other less fortuante people the chance to stretch their hard-earned (or government issued) money as far as possible.

They should build it similar to the Walmart in Wheatfield. Hide it behind trees. I hate Walmart but admit it would be a good location considering FWS may be converted to mixed use.
I was hoping Paula's donuts would have moved in to the old Dickies Donuts..

The ACME Nipple company?! That is the best name ever.

And sure, welcome Walmart. Why not?

Hopefully this is a rumor, Wal Mart adds nothing to a community but in fact results in higher costs to taxpayers since their employees are among the lowest paid in the country. We will subsidize the Wal Mart employees with health care, food stamps, housing, etc since Wal Mart does not provide a fair wage or enough hours to allow their work force to be self sufficient. Their products are of the lowest quality and Wal Mart has a sordid history of exploiting the poor throughout the world. Wal Mart also drives out existing business resulting in less choice, fewer jobs, and a shrinking tax base. Let's not allow this corporate parasite to blight the Elmwood Hertel area, we desreve better.

Would that include the Nortel Bar & Grill?

This will only put KMart out of business, and I think actually spur some other growth. I'm no fan of WalMart, and would much rather see a Costco, but this corner is so barren that I actually think it's a good idea, although I bet it will never happen.

NW corner of Elmwood & Hertel is a bad location -- there's an extensive habitat regeneration area that can be seen on the entry image, but which is even more impressive on the ground. There is succession forest, and much of it is native species, as opposed to the invasives that often move into former rail corridors (which this is).

Just a bit north (where you see the Home Depot logo in the entry image) would be a much better location: the former Curtiss-Wright plant, currently for sale. With (as I understand) 400,000 sq. ft. of space, that would give Walmart all the space it needs and then some. While I haven't been inside, it almost certainly has steel truss rafters, which would make for some cool interior spaces. Its conversion could potentially even become a historic preservation tax credit project, which I'm guessing would be a first for Walmart.

The Curtiss-Wright plant, if I'm not mistaken, was built toward the end of WWI to meet military production needs, allowing C-W to move out of its smaller, temporary space in the former Thomas Flyer plant where Rich Products HQ is now located. I'm not sure, but it's possible that it was the first purpose-built plant for industrial-scale production of aircraft in the U.S.

Many will oppose Walmart for economic justice and other concerns with which I can identify. It might be a smart move by Walmart to declare their intentions to rehab the existing building for their purposes. Otherwise, they'll be fighting not only those in the community who oppose them for economic reasons, but also those who will oppose the clearcutting of a succession forest as well as the demolition of the old industrial buildings of character north of Hertel.

Doing this right, Walmart might have a shot. Otherwise, they may face opposition more intense and from more directions than they face in most places.

Wow, BRO is being very pro HUUUUUUUUGEE-AH Corporation today. This is an interesting and refreshing change of pace. I am curious to see how walmart might propose this.

To the virtuous ones who don't buy "cheap crap from overseas," please check your computer and monitor to see where they were made, check your shirt tag, and shoes. Then please check where any three random plastic items in your house were made. I'd be surprised if any of those items were made in the U.S. and surprised if you bought any at Wal-Mart (since you are virtuous).

What's the harm of letting Wal-Mart sell poor people the same stuff for less?

i love shopping at Walmart, there reall popular down here.

City should allow Walmart to build only if they put their parking lot at rear of store.

I can only support this if they build it to look like the unbuilt Frank Lloyd Wright Walmart. And build it to the curb.

I think its time that Buffalo gets an American Apparel store. I'm sure the hipster-style of some items will turn off some people but the clothes are made in the US, reasonably priced and good quality. An Elmwood, Hertel or Allentown location would be perfect.

Bass Pro anyone?

@benfranklin: In addition to the profit being off, so are the employees. This article states 1,400,000. Plus you assume they are all full time. Probably only 1/3rd are, which means the FTE's (Full Time Equivalent), are closer to 1,000,000.

So now you are at $8.00 per person per hour.

Bottom line is someone wants to build at the intersection of two of our major business districts (Elmwood and Hertel). This intersection is awful. You have bare land, a closed down donut shop and a Kinkos. Bring on Big Box. It can't hurt that corner.

I never heard so many illinformed people talk about Wal mart. It is a great place to work, don't listen to the crap you hear. Isn't this the same city that bent over backwards to put a k Mart in the slums that now sits empty .

The food is better quality and cheaper and better assortment than TOPs. Thats true. I dont think their employees get paid better than employees at TOPs.

TOPs is local. Its our equivalent of Wegmans but its disappointing that TOPs is nowhere near competing with either Walmart or Wegmans. Though a Walmart SuperCenter will hurt both TOPs and Wegmans.

What I would have liked to see is Walmart locate further towards Black Rock and do something more upscale.

I guess its best to say...anything that makes North Buffalo, West Side and Black Rock more livable helps to stabilize the area from further deterioration is about the best we can hope to achieve.

I'd favor Walmart being allowed at Hertel-Elmwood with a big front parking lot like the City allows for Target, Tops, Home Depot, and many others in that general area... although I'm surprised if Walmart really isn't sticking with what looked like a strategy of staying outside of the city's boundaries. The new Seneca St Walmart is a few feet across the city line into West Seneca, and the new Amherst store is less than 2 miles from the city.

Maybe in the northern area there isn't a suitable site available in Kenmore, or maybe they don't think the current majority on the Common Council will try to unreasonably restrict them here.

Walmart should just have to follow the same rules as apply to everyone else here - no more, no less.

reasons why I'm glad Buffalo stays broke. Less money to do stupid stuff.

My fellow Buffalonians, this is a great announcement for North Buffalonians, but not East, West or South Buffalonians. The West Side has a Wegmans and Tops (with a Hispanic flair to it), South Buffalo has a plethora of grocery stores, but what does the East Side have? Not much of anything, but some ghetto Tops on Jefferson I believe (but Im not sure). Look, the East side has been neglegted since the late 70's and early 80's. It used to have a Sears and stores, and was as bustling as the West Side until history took it's course. But my point is, there are nostores or businesses on the East Side with the potential to create jobs because these businesses are afraid to move in. In fact, I'll bet all of you if any chain of any local, regional or national significance was looking over its war map of where to install their next/newest store in Buffalo they don't even consider the East Side. But do they consider the fact that it has 4 major highways running through it(33, 198, 5 (Main St.) and arguably the 90)! Don't forget about direct light rail access, vacant rail lines running straight throughout the East Side, and enough abandoned warehouses. In addition, it houses my father's alma mater, The big "C", in which he would walk to his house from his Hamlin park house. And this wasn't in the '40s or '50s or anything, it was the Superb Sixties with race riots and everything. But with Canisius College (hence the Big "C") in the HEART of the West Side, a prominent private school in the Northeast U.S., how can ANYONE possibly look over this beautifully convient section of the city in a perfect world? They can't. But they can today, and for one word: FEAR. Because when do you hear about shootings at Canisius or shops and businesses in that area? Never. All of this is just food for thought/my $0.02 on this.

ps - Let Walmart rent the hideous gasometer on Elmwood, otherwise known as the new Burchfield-Penney museum. It's already more ugly than any WalMart, has a big parking lot built on "pristine land", and is much closer to potential clientelle than Hertel/Elmwood.

I like the idea of a walmart moving in here. Its a little closer to the zoo for me and the exhibits are free!

I don't think Buffalo needs a Wal-Mart at all. All it does is hurt small local retailers.

If you want an example just turn to Lockport, as soon as Wal-Mart went in the shops on main st seemed to close up overnight. They have however started coming back but its taken 10-15 years. Lockport also had a Mall before Wal-Mart went in, yes it was struggling a little but Wal-Mart was the final nail in the coffin.

There has to be a better use for that corner then a Wal-Mart.

Just think after Wal-Mart builds, ten years later we will have new vacant building on that site or a HUGE dollar store.

as long as population and disposable income are falling instead of rising, there is no net economic gain when walmart enters a local economy. opening a new big box here just means closing an older one there, wiping out locally-owned businesses along the way. no new jobs will be created.

here is how walmart affected chicago, which is much more prosperous than we are:

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2012/09/radiating-death-how-walmart-displaces-nearby-small-businesses/3272/

Walmart pressures companies to charge it less for items or will cease carrying. It resulted in the end of Rubbermaid as we knew it (since merged with Newell and buckled to Walmart demands), has caused companies to move production out of the US to lower production costs and meet Walmart demands (see Spangler candy canes), and countless others. And yet, Walmart is often not the lowest cost provider for items. It just sells more because perception is that everything is cheaper. One of my favorite pieces on Walmart is a Frontline series from 8 years ago. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/etc/script.html . I will say that Walmart has given me an experience no other store anywhere else ever has: my cashier was led out in handcuffs in the middle of my sales transaction on one of the few occasions I bought something there.

Wal Mart's business model is based on exploiting employees, suppliers, and the workers that produce the products they sell. The "falling prices" they advertise are directly related to falling wages, moving production to third world countries, and putting pressure on suppliers to cut wages even further. Wal Mart is in the extraction business, extracting wealth from a community while returning little to nothing. Just another example of a corporation that adds to the great disparity in wealth and keeps America workers from prospering.

We just looked into acquiring the former Dickie's Donuts location at Elmwood & Hertel.

Wal-Mart possibly moving into that area means we won't be.

Wal-Mart business model is to extort government, impoverish third world nations and have sexual intercourse with underage women. Last time I enter a Wal-Mart, the greeter attempted to rape me. I enjoyed it, but I'm sure others do not.

Well Davvid, since you were my greeter, so were you.

In ten or twelve years from now you will be reading on Buffalo Rising. Developer Rocco Termini is planning on buying The former Wal-Mart building on Elmwood near Hertel. It will be a mix of residential plus commercial space and utilize historic preservation tax credits. If Wal-mart is still in that location twelve years from now, that would be historic!

Look at the post from "buffaloroam" where he/she says "whenever I'm back in Buffalo with someone new I enjoy showing them that site." Isn't that nice: bringing new people to an underdeveloped area of Buffalo and show them something to laugh at. We don't need that kind of public relations. I mean seriously. Where do you live now? Let me guess: Chicago, LA, Miami, Tampa, Atlanta, New York, DC, or some other World Class city?

If Walmart must come into Buffalo, I wish they'd tear down the Kmart and build there. I live in the area, and while I'd prefer not to see Walmart move into my neighborhood, I realize such things are out of my control. Given that, I'd welcome other development that Walmart could bring to the area. Say, a new permanent North Buffalo library? Not in a Kmart strip mall? A Trader Joe's on the SW corner of Hertel & Delaware? I hope the small businesses in the area benefit from this - like The Kitchen Table, just across the street, a small restaurant with yummy, inexpensive food, and the hardest working owner you'll find. There are 3 "adult" toy/video shops near that corner - I'd take a Walmart over these stores.

P.S. This is what happens when someone demands an exorbitant price for a piece of property. The only fish in town that can afford it is Walmart. If Walmart goes in, I'm betting on a Panera + Chipotle on the SW corner. I noticed a Panera billboard on Amherst & Elmwood - seems out of place when the nearest one is quite a bit North on Sheridan. Maybe they're testing the waters?