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M/CLOUDY Temp: 65 °F Wind: N at 3 mph Saturday, October 4, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend September 28, 2003 Public invited to Wal-Mart meet A Central Point committee wants residents’ opinions on the proposed ‘supercenter’ By BUFFY POLLOCK for the Mail Tribune CENTRAL POINT — City planners hope a public pow-wow Tuesday will help paint a more accurate picture of community opinion on a 207,000-square-foot Wal-Mart proposed for the northwest corner of East Pine Street and Hamrick Road. The Central Point Citizens Advisory Committee will host the event, "Wal-Mart in Central Point? Lets Talk About It," from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Jackson County Expo’s Padgham Pavilion. The meeting will be open to the public, and community development director Tom Humphrey said the open forum nature of the meeting is intended to "inform the public about the proposal and to invite public opinion in a non-decision-making setting." The Central Point project is one of two Wal-Mart supercenters proposed for the valley. A second is planned for Miles Field in Medford. Existing Wal-Marts in Medford and Talent would close when the new stores are built. Concerns have been raised over how both stores would affect traffic, the local economy and the environment. Advertisement Humphrey said Tuesday’s meeting will give Central Point residents an opportunity to ask questions and express their opinions. "There’s been a lot of misinformation on what’s been happening and this will be an opportunity for citizens to express themselves without the threat of people making a decision that same night," Humphrey said. The meeting will be led by the city planning staff, 60 students from Crater High government and politics classes and government-relations consultant Elaine Cogan of Portland. Though space will be somewhat limited, city staff expect around 300 people, split into rotating groups of 10 to 12 addressing issues of traffic, environmental impacts, economic impacts and effects on Central Point neighborhoods. Wal-Mart spokeswoman Amy Hill was unaware of the meeting and disappointed to learn it would not include everyone involved. "I think it would have been something that would be great to have members of the Wal-Mart project team available to answer questions," she said, "but it doesn’t sound like that’s what the city wanted." Of 10,000 fliers Wal-Mart mailed last month soliciting community feedback on the project, Hill said 1,500 had been returned, "pretty good for a direct-mail piece." All but 250 had been in favor of "Wal-Mart coming to town," she said. Becca Croft, spokeswoman for Central Point First, a local citizens group concerned about the impacts Wal-Mart would have on the small town, said the meeting would be a chance to address a myriad of concerns. "It will be a chance to see the facts as they are and discuss them in small groups so it can be a real pow-wow situation," Croft said. Humphrey emphasized that no decisions would be made at the meeting but that citizen’s advisory committee members would evaluate information received and conduct a follow-up meeting in October to consider a possible recommendation to the council. More information is available by calling city planners at 664-3321, extension 292. Buffy Pollock is a free-lance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times