Thursday, November 4, 1999
Wal-Mart, developer sue Chandler, council
Say city erred in rejecting superstore
By Janie Magruder The Arizona Republic
Wal-Mart and Vestar Development Co. sued Chandler, on Wednesday, alleging their constitutional rights were violated by the City Council when it rejected the retail giant's plan to build a Supercenter in an upscale residential neighborhood.
The lawsuit, filed in Maricopa County Superior Court, does not seek
damages, but asks the court to overturn the council's unanimous decision and allow the store to be built.
"That area is approved for this type of development, and we complied with the rules set forth by the city. In fact, we met and exceeded them," Wal-Mart spokeswoman Daphne Davis said.
The move caught city officials and neighborhood leaders by surprise. Councilman Boyd Dunn, who has been
making land-use decisions for Chandler for 12 years, said he couldn't recall being sued by a developer before.
"I think it's unfortunate and unnecessary," said Dunn, a Tempe lawyer. "There are quite a few compatible sites for a super Wal-Mart in the city of Chandler, and to put all their eggs in one basket for this particular site, I just don't understand it."
Sandra Laney, an Ocotillo resident who led an enormous drive to defeat the plan, called the lawsuit a "bully tactic" that will only make more enemies for Wal-Mart.
"They want to flex their muscles and show us they're Wal-Mart," Laney said. "If you want to be a good neighbor, which they keep saying They want to do, why would they do this when there's so many locations available to them?"
In a word, money. Wal-Mart has spent "millions" planning the Chandler Supercenter since first hammering their "coming soon" sign into the ground on the northeastern comer of Alma School and Queen Creek roads, Davis said.
the webmaster says its nice to see wal-mart sue the crooked bastards on the chandler city councils who flush the constition down the tolit and pass unconstitional laws which prevent people from using their land.
the sad thing is that common people dont have the resources to sue the government when crooked bastards pass unconstitional laws like this.