Another Day, Another Neighborhood Displeased with Walmart

Back in February it was announced that the H.J. Russell & Company subsidiary responsible for developing the Historic Westside Village had secured Walmart as a tenant in the wake of the closure of the Publix store. In addition to excitement over the potential revival of the stalled development, it seemed the standard antipathy toward Walmart was shelved because the store's presence would solve a serious food desert problem in the neighborhood. But as construction begins, critics are voicing displeasure with Walmart's aesthetic scheme for the site and a lack of concessions provided to the neighborhood along the lines of those given Berkley Park when Walmart signed onto Selig's Howell Mill development. And they're playing the Martin Luther King, Jr. card. [Midtown Patch]