Chicago Tribune Headline – 9/10/13
CHICAGO, IL – The Chicago Transit Authority announced today
that it will be expanding its fleet of buses and trains servicing the greater
Wal-Mart area in Chicago’s Roscoe Village. The announcement comes after months
of pressure by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who insisted a lack of public transportation
to and from the Supercenter could jeopardize its success.
“It just wasn’t fair,” Emanuel says of the store’s chances
at success before government intervention. “Here’s this brand-new, start-up
Wal-Mart just trying to get on its feet, solely by the business of walk-up and
drive-up consumers. Meanwhile all these other local businesses have been in the
area for generations and have an established customer base; not to mention the
fact that most everybody in the area knows where these stores are and how to
get there. Something needed to be done.”
And something is being done. The CTA has tripled the number
of buses servicing the area, and has rearranged several other bus routes so
that a bus will either arrive at or depart from Wal-Mart every 15 seconds. In
addition to the new bus services, the CTA is in the developmental stage of a
$250 million tunnel project to create a new “L” line that would bring customers
directly underneath Wal-Mart.
Residents of the area are pleased with the steps being taken
to improve Wal-Mat’s accessibility, many of whom had been avoiding the store
because of the long walk from the nearest bus stop to the
Supercenter’s front
entranceway. 
“I feel bad because I haven’t been to Wal-Mart yet, and I
like to give new stores a little business, but the walk from the bus to the
Wal-Mart was just too long, almost 3 blocks,” says Roscoe Village resident Cleo
Dubrowski. “I once went to another Wal-Mart, when I lived in Missouri, and
bought two new tires, 12 boxes of mac’n’cheese, a tent, and a Roomba, but I had
a car then and could not imagine having to walk to the bus with all that. It’d
be a nightmare. Finally the city is giving us a chance to give Wal-Mart a
chance.”
Local business owners understand the uphill battle Wal-Mart
faces. John Thompkins, owner of JT Foods, a small grocery store in Roscoe
Village emphasizes with Wal-Mart. “I know what it’s like to be a start-up
business in a new place,” says the man who has owned and operated his store at
the corner of Irving Park and Claremont for over 40 years. “I had to work my
tail off for the last 40 years to keep this place open and put my kids through
school. And while it might be a little easier for a multi-billion dollar
corporation to open a new chain store then it is for a fella like me to create
and maintain a small business, there really isn’t much difference between what
we’re trying to do. We’re both just trying to get our feet on solid ground. And
sure, I get that it’s literally impossible for me to compete with their prices
or selection, and they’ll probably put me out of business within the year, but
I’m glad they’re getting a shot just like I did. Besides, I heard Wal-Mart
looks to hire recently unemployed locals as greeters, and they have a top-notch
benefit plan, so that’s pretty nice, I guess.”
No matter how you look at it, this is a step in the right
direction for America, especially in our fragile economy. At long last the
little guy is getting a fair shake at making it in the business world.
Pete Higgins
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