Residents protest Wal-Mart store
By MICHELLE MASKALY, Home News Tribune from the Web, February 1, 2005
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Photos by MARK R.
SULLIVAN,
Chief photographer
Protesters line the sideways along Route 27 South near Talmadge Road in Edison to protest the opening of a new Wal-Mart store along Route 27, above.
"We don't control who the landowner has as tenants."
George Spadoro
MAYOR OF EDISON |
Edison, NJ -- Close to 80 Wal-Mart opponents lined Route 27 South in front of the Clarion Hotel last night an hour and a half before Mayor George A. Spadoro was to give his State of the Township Address.
They were showing their opposition to the township's approval for the nationwide chain to build a store at the corner of Route 27 and Vineyard Road.
"We are giving him forewarning we will be paying attention from now through the election," said Edison resident Anthony Russomanno, who led the protest.
"We are going to hold their feet to the fire."
Some protesters wore white shirts that had Wal-Mart written in the center of a red circle with a slash mark through it and carried signs that read "stop overdevelopment."
Russomanno said the township should have found a "less intense" way to develop the site, adding that "should another candidate (for mayor) emerge, we will give it serious consideration."
Joe Romano, who has lived in the township for 27 years, said he participated in the protest because Wal-Mart doesn't use union workers.
Romano, a member of Local 863, said the store will also generate additional traffic in an already congested area.
As guests at the Chamber of Commerce function moved from the cocktail room into the main room where Spadoro was to give his speech, close to 50 of the protesters began marching past the entrance of the hotel chanting, "Hey, Hey, Ho, Ho, Wal-Mart has to go."
Spadoro dismissed the protesters saying they were venting their anger at the wrong place and they should instead be holding demonstrations at other Wal-Mart stores.
"We don't control who the landowner has as tenants," Spadoro said.
In his State of the Township address, Spadoro touted the new zoning ordinance adopted by the township.
"It firmly places Edison on a land-use path that preserves our neighborhoods, enforces our commitment to open space, and directs our businesses and commercial development to locations where it makes the most sense," said the mayor.
He noted the township's zero municipal tax increase for the 2004-05 fiscal year, the demolition of the Ford plant on Route 1 and the numerous cultural programs the township offered.
During his 40-minute speech, Spadoro called on the Board of Education to eliminate the annual $5 million in capital improvements from its operating budget and instead go to the voters for permission to sell bonds later this year.
"This fiscal strategy should allow the board to minimize tax increases for fiscal year 2005-06 and fully capitalize on state grants to pay for 40 percent of the improvements for school infrastructure before this program expires," Spadoro said.
Although the board would run the risk of voters rejecting a bond proposal, Spadoro said it's a risk they should take.
"It's irrational not to take that chance," he said.
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