Wal-Mart Drops Twin Wal-Mart Concept

The large chain had planned to circumvent a local law in place for size-caps on retail stores.

1 minute read

May 18, 2005, 9:00 AM PDT

By Brenda Meyer


"The project, planned for the tiny hamlet of Dunkirk, attracted attention from communities across the nation that feared Wal-Mart would use the model to subvert their own size caps for stores. The two Wal-Mart operations proposed in Dunkirk -- each with its own entrance, utilities, bathrooms and cash registers -- would have had a combined area 30 percent larger than the 75,000-square-foot limit for a single retail store.

"I've gotten calls across the country from people worried about what I call 'the Dunkirk loophole,' " said Al Norman, founder of Sprawl-Busters, a Massachusetts-based group that helps communities fight big-box stores."

Thanks to Brenda Meyer

Tuesday, May 17, 2005 in The Washington Post

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 21, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Rendering of California High-Speed Rail station with bullet train.

California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself

The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.

May 19, 2025 - Benjamin Schneider

Two Rivian trucks charging at Rivian branded charging ports.

US Senate Reverses California EV Mandate

The state planned to phase out the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035, a goal some carmakers deemed impossible to meet.

4 hours ago - CALmatters

Metal U.S. Geodetic Survey marker in stone in Arizona.

Trump Cuts Decimate Mapping Agency

The National Geodetic Survey maintains and updates critical spatial reference systems used extensively in both the public and private sectors.

5 hours ago - Wired

Close-up of 10 mph speed limit sign.

Washington Passes First US ‘Shared Streets’ Law

Cities will be allowed to lower speed limits to 10 miles per hour and prioritize pedestrians on certain streets.

6 hours ago - The Urbanist