It certainly was a really big show. The Nix Center ballroom was packed with 500 or so concerned citizens (and likely some others: “Is this the beginning Spanish class?”), with the overflow spilling out into the card room. A real old-time Town Meeting, billed as discussing Fairhope’s future development, but everyone there knew it was really all about Wal-Mart.
State Sen. Bradley Byrne served as moderator for the Q&A session, backed up by a panel of state, county and city of Fairhope officials. Among this last group were all of the city council, the mayor and the city attorney.
Sen. Byrne started with a mini-civics lesson describing the property rights protection of the U.S. Constitution, the very limited authority over land use granted to the counties by the State of Alabama and the broad powers of the city governments to establish zoning and land use plans.
This reminder of the limits of power and where legal authority and responsibility reside was a valuable reference in answering residents’ questions. Most were focussed on finding ways to block Wal-Mart from building a Super Store on county land just outside the eastern city limits, but some were concerned with establishing blame for “letting” Wal-Mart come into Fairhope.
As for blame, it quickly became clear that Mayor Tim Kant was a prime target. The inquirers wanted an answer to the question: What did he know about Wal-Mart’s plans, and when did he know it? If he knew something, why didn’t he tell folks about it?
Mayor Kant admitted he had met with Wal-Mart representatives “about two years ago,” but they never came back and he gave little thought to their general discussions. He said it wasn’t a secret as he involved council member (and Realtor) Mike Ford in the meeting. Ford replied that he recalled a meeting much more recently and suggested that he wasn’t involved in whatever happened with the big box store some two years before. He later took the floor to deny rumors that he had been involved in the land deal with Wal-Mart or had profited in any manner from it.
Not missing the chance to distance himself from the mayor and Wal-Mart, council member Cecil Christenberry apologized for the failure of the city to prepare for the possibility of Wal-Mart’s entry into the Fairhope area. “We thought it couldn’t happen here,” he noted, but then added that the mayor, not the council had the lead on such matters.
Baldwin County Commissioner Ed Bishop joined in, assuring everyone the county had made no contact with Wal-Mart – except, possibly, maybe on “highway issues.” Sen. Byrne made it clear the state had no role in this at all – remember the civics lesson: everything on land use is in the hands of the city’s leaders.
While beating up on the mayor clearly was appealing, there were lots of questions on ways to stop Wal-Mart from proceeding with their plans to build in Fairhope. Or rather in Baldwin County, but really, really close.
Q: Can city zoning prohibit Wal-Mart from building?
A: The Wal-Mart site is not in the city; city zoning has no effect on property in the county.
Q: Can the county create a special land-use zone that would prevent Wal-Mart from building?
A: Yes, but it would require a petition, legislative approval and a referendum – far too long to beat the issuance of permits to build.
Q: Why not deny the permit and let them sue? Tie them up in court until a land-use plan would prohibit building a big-box store there.
A: That would be a violation of laws that officials have sworn to uphold (Comment of city attorney Tut Wynne) and the courts would direct that a permit be issued.
The Q&A went on for nearly two hours, with proposals for various dubious and maybe even shady schemes to block Wal-Mart. In all this there were even a few clearly legal ideas – maybe not highly effective, but at least not violations of law.
Q: Who will agree not to shop at Wal-Mart if it is built?
A: Standing ovation and cheers. Message is: “If you build it, we will NOT come” (therefore why build?).
Q: Since the site is on Single Tax Colony land can the “Colony” keep them from building?
A: (By the President of the Single Tax Colony) Technically, yes (applause and cheers), but it would require the vote of a majority of the colony members(subdued applause), but it’s not a sure thing to pass (silence).
Wal-Mart representatives attended the meeting as spectators, but they had not been asked to speak. Sen. Byrne suggested that there be some future meeting where Wal-Mart would be an active participant.
There was an artist’s rendering of the proposed store in the lobby of the Nix Center. It attracted only fleeting attention, but for those taking the time to look, the drawing showed a large building with a façade designed to look like small village shops.
It looked pretty good and with more landscaping to break up the acres of parking lot, the big-box, made to look like small-shops, could be a visual improvement over what’s already been built around the proposed site. The smart money is betting that Wal-Mart will go in as planned (Don’t get excited, it’s not gambling, just a figure of speech).
If that’s what happens, the building at least shouldn’t be a bone of contention. But since virtually everything else is, there will be much more to come before this issue is resolved. And then there is the broader problem of planning for the rest of Fairhope.
Contact Pete Gleszer at jubilee@lagniappemobile.com.
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