by TImothy Rutt
A group that wants to stop the Walmart Neighborhood Market at Lincoln Avenue and Figueroa Street said that their search for irregularities in the location's documentation came up empty.
"While uncovering some anomalies, we found no irregularities in the documents submitted by Walmart to the County that could slow down or halt construction of the Walmart [sic]... based on the current (1986) Altadena Community Standards District guidelines and County regulations," said an email announcement from Neighbors Building a Better Altadena (NBBA). "While this is a huge disappointment, we shall continue to monitor this situation, and look for alternative pathways to slow or stop their development."
NBBA was raising $2.500 to hire LAANE (Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy), a community organizing group, to research Walmart's permit and other filings with the county. Walmart is planning to construct a Neighborhood Market, its smaller-footprint grocery store, at the Altadena location. The Neighborhood Market is to be a "site-to-store" location, where any item available at a Walmart can be ordered and delivered to the grocery store.
In the email, NBBA said that they are continuing to build connections with the "OUR Walmart" organization of Walmart employees and "to people who are working to improve job opportunities in the Altadena area."
NBBA also said they support a temporary halt to new local development while the Community Standards District is being reviewed and updated by a town council committee. Citing the sale of the Blockbuster property, the in-process sale of the Webster complex, and the documents filed to develop the Lake/Calavaras vacant lot, "NBBA wants to support that visioning committee's research and community outreach, and think that their activities can best be conducted in an environment free of concerns about imminent development on Lake Avenue. We strongly support a temporary halt to development until the subcommittee completes its work and makes its report for new community standards to the County Board of Supervisors."
