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Thursday, March 6, 2008

Wal-Mart Expected to Have Positive Impact on Area

By Lee Ross
Mountain View Telegraph
    Attention Wal-Mart shoppers!
    Edgewood's 214,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter— scheduled to open Friday— is sure to have groceries, clothes and baubles of all description, but it is sure to add more than just consumer goods to the East Mountains and Estancia Valley.
    "Any economic stimulation is a positive impact to this area," said Torrance County Manager Joy Ansley. "I'm jealous of the gross receipts (taxes)."
    The new store will certainly mean a cash infusion for Edgewood, according to Paul Cassidy, who has reported on the possible financial impact of Wal-Mart on Edgewood to the Town Council.
    He said the taxable revenues from Wal-Mart might be as high as $70 to $120 million, which means the town could gain anywhere from $1.8 million to more than $3 million a year in added tax revenue. The gross receipts tax rate in Edgewood is 7.5625 percent. The state takes 5 percent of the gross receipts tax with the town collecting the remaining 2.5625 percent.
    Cassidy predicted that shopping at Wal-Mart will initially be high, but after that hot streak, the money coming in to the town should stabilize by June or July, Cassidy said.
    "It will stabilize town revenues and increase them to the point where council can increase services," he said. "Things like roads ... I know they (the Town Council) have a whole laundry list of things."
    Cassidy said he also expects new business to crop up in Edgewood, businesses that duplicate the services in Albuquerque.
    "Businessmen and businesswomen will be creating businesses to try to capture that," Cassidy said.
   
Spreading the wealth
    Edgewood, however, won't be the only one that benefits from the new store.
    Myra Pancrazio, executive director of the Estancia Valley Economic Development Association, said the economy of the whole area should pick up.
    "Rising water raises all ships," she said, quoting an adage often used by local business owner Dave Tixier. "Wal-Mart is one of many things that are coming to the Moriarty-Edgewood area."
    She said she gets three to four calls each week from "small businesses to mega-businesses" looking into locating in the area.
    She also noted that a very high percentage of the nearly 500 people employed by Wal-Mart are from the East Mountains.
    "A lot of those people had jobs in Albuquerque," she said. "This allows them to spend their money here."
    Those farther from Edgewood, such as the village of Tijeras and the town of Mountainair said they may not see any effect from the store.
    "Maybe it will alleviate so much traffic," said Tijeras Mayor Gloria Chavez. "I think, for the most part, people from here will continue to go into Albuquerque (to shop)."
    Vel Gilley, the mayor of Mountainair, said her constituents are probably as close to a Wal-Mart in Belen as they are to Edgewood.
    She added that some people in her community believe "that Wal-Mart is an evil thing ... a lot of people think those jobs (at Wal-Mart) are not great and they may not be career choices, but they provide an income when you need one."
    She also noted that the store has an extensive recycling program and uses energy-saving appliances.
    "We need to be more conservative on our fossil fuels," she said. "I wish the whole Edgewood area well, and (Wal-Mart) will be a great impact for them."
   
Perceptions of change
    What the increase in business may mean to Paul Welch, Edgewood's new police chief, is traffic.
    With 37 years of law enforcement experience, much of that in Wisconsin and Illinois, Welch has seen new Wal-Marts open twice in his career.
    He said he does not support the perception that there is an increase in crime particular to Wal-Mart.
    "Traffic increased," he said. "That's the biggest effect that Wal-Mart will have on a particular area."
    He added that reports of shoplifting would likely increase, but only because Wal-Mart's security team is watching out for shoplifters.
    "Shoplifting goes on regardless of the size of the store," he said.
    Another common perception about Wal-Mart is that local businesses will not be able to compete. But the company is taking steps to help local retailers.
    Debbie Ortiz, the executive director of the Moriarty Chamber of Commerce, is advising local businesses on how to stay competitive with the big-box store.
    "We're encouraging really good customer service ... and personalize the experience when the customer walks in," she said. "Most of our businesses are very, very good at that."
    She said that Wal-Mart will host a seminar on staying competitive for local small businesses to attend.
    Another effect of additional traffic, Ortiz said, is that "most small businesses really actually thrive."