Over 100 souls packed the house at the Altadena Town Council Tuesday night, and even with a full agenda for the evening, most of them had one thing on their mind: Walmart.
Walmart representatives were there to make a presentation on the Neighborhood Market currently under construction at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Figueroa Drive,. Critics were also there in force to ask questions, while others asked for favors, such as local jobs, or a market for local growers.
Walmart spokesman Javier Angulo said that Walmart made taken an effort to move forward in areas that need access to fresh grocieries and durable goods. Argula quoted an LA Times article from 2011 that called northwest Pasadena a “food desert,” and that there were only three grocery stores serving 42,000 residents.
One of several flyers circulated in the meeting by Walmart opponents took issue with that figure, pointing out that there were two supermarkets within a mile of the Walmart location (Baja Ranch and Super King), as well as a Ralphs in Altadena and several smaller markets (such as Armen Grocery, Bo’s Altadena Market, and others). The flyer counted ten supermarkets within a one to five mile radius and 11 smaller grocery stores (altho’ Armen was double-counted, as a grocery store and as a “supermarket” under its previous ownership as Altadena Food Fair). The counts included markets in La Canada and Pasadena.
by Timothy Rutt
Walmart representatives were there to make a presentation on the Neighborhood Market currently under construction at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Figueroa Drive,. Critics were also there in force to ask questions, while others asked for favors, such as local jobs, or a market for local growers.
Walmart spokesman Javier Angulo said that Walmart made taken an effort to move forward in areas that need access to fresh grocieries and durable goods. Argula quoted an LA Times article from 2011 that called northwest Pasadena a “food desert,” and that there were only three grocery stores serving 42,000 residents.
One of several flyers circulated in the meeting by Walmart opponents took issue with that figure, pointing out that there were two supermarkets within a mile of the Walmart location (Baja Ranch and Super King), as well as a Ralphs in Altadena and several smaller markets (such as Armen Grocery, Bo’s Altadena Market, and others). The flyer counted ten supermarkets within a one to five mile radius and 11 smaller grocery stores (altho’ Armen was double-counted, as a grocery store and as a “supermarket” under its previous ownership as Altadena Food Fair). The counts included markets in La Canada and Pasadena.