NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The final step in the development of the Walmart Supercenter was completed in December with the sale of the former gravel bank on Curran Highway.
Wal-Mart Real Estate Business Trust bought the property and an adjacent parcel at 1519-1525 South State St. for $7.35 million on Dec 19.
The property includes the gravel bank on Curran Highway and land formerly used by Berkshire Concrete Co.
The retail giant filed plans for a 160,000 square foot store last fall but purchase of the 23 acres was put off until some site preparation and cleanup was completed. Buying the land means the company will begin construction soon.
BVS 5401 Investors LLC, developers for the shopping plaza, purchased the property from the city in 2007 for $700,000. The parcel was one of several bought by developers Nigro Development LLC of Albany, N.Y., and Starwood-Ceruzzi of Connecticut several years ago. Nigro has since dropped out, leaving Ceruzzi Properties of Fairfield, Conn., in control.
Ceruzzi, acting as BVS 5401 Investors LLC, also purchased the Dellaghelfa properties at 1519 South State St. and West Road for about $2.2 million in 2007, and the former North Adams Plaza in 2004 for $2.5 million.
iBerkshires.com welcomes critical, respectful dialogue. Name-calling, personal attacks, libel, slander or foul language is not allowed. All comments are reviewed before posting and will be deleted or edited as necessary.
Lowes is in dire financial straits? They are not doing any expansion, anywhere. So, no Lowes. Lets just pray we don't get a "cr-applebees" next to Wal-Mart as is the rumor.
We Should all welcome the new Walmart. It will be so wonderful to have everything under one roof. I know I speak for everyone when I say we will spend all our money at the new store to support it. Walmart and apple pie now that is the American way.
Hate the Walmart, low paying jobs with no benefits for most. Many products imported junk from overseas with Americans paying top dollar for disposable items of no quality. I say support the locals, and downtown business, and boycott corporate greed which is what Walmart is really all about.
Editor: Sometimes Walmart is the only choice. We've got nothing against Walmart, but we're not nearly excited about it as some others. I Agree (11) - I Disagree (3)
If the Golubs were smart, they would go after the property Lowe's was going to use and build a new Price Chopper super store, so they can compete head to head with Walmart. They've done that in many other places, like Saratoga, built their store right across from that Super Walmart, and they've been competitive. We all now pretty much know Lowe's is not coming.
Fair and Balanced... you couldn't be more wrong. Alcombright is extremely supportive of this Walmart project. If you had been to any of the meetings surrounding its permitting, you would have seen that. If you have a gripe with iBerkshires, why exactly do you keep coming here and commenting?
Please enlighten us on how the Mayor has been against the Walmart project, FairAndBalanced. Your comment was specifically directed at the editor's comment that she is not as excited about it as others, which is fine - I'm not, either. But you then say she is Alcombright's mouthpiece on that, and as another writer has said... he fully supports the project and pushed for it. So just admit you're wrong and move on.
Don't get me wrong or anything, being a poor college student you would think that Wal Mart would be great for me, low prices and everything, but personally I know this is going to absolutely kill North Adams as a whole. Getting a super Wal Mart is going to suck the "mom and pop" businesses right out of Main Street. I completely agree with Buy American with his above comment. The giant retailer's low prices often come with a high cost. Wal Mart's relentless pressure can crush the companies it does business with and force them to send jobs overseas. Are we shopping our way straight to the unemployment line? Support local businesses! The Wal Mart Effect is a perfect book to read for this!
Editor: Or watch Wall*E, it's much more entertaining. I Agree (1) - I Disagree (1)
What first shocks me is that ANY land in NA is work $7m. No way. But they were foolish enough to pay that much so more power to them! As far as Walmart goes.... I'm sorry, but I can't afford to pay mom and pop prices. Walmart simply has the best prices, especially in this economy, and they employ a LOT of people. NA needs JOBS. Stop complaining! I'll take a job with no/low benefits over NO JOB any day. If Walmart is expanding there it means that their current store is doing well enough to do so. Something Zayres and KMart were never able to do. Be lucky you all will have a great store over nothing!
Editor: Unfortunately, Kmart was doing well here. It was a corporate decision to close it and we've been the worse for it. I Agree (6) - I Disagree (2)
It's not the "mom & pop's" we should be worried about (there are very few, and fewer that compete with WalMart's inventory). The Super WalMart will put pressure on the 3 grocery stores in town and losing those will be catastrophic. If/when Super WalMart is the only grocery store in town, the citizens will surely suffer and it will be very hard to get a competitor back.
Editor: I've looked at the prices at Walmart and they don't seem so great that I would truck down to Curran Highway to do my shopping. I buy coffee there, occasionally soda and Little Debbies, but I don't like their milk or their bread.
I bet Adams takes advantage, though. They only have one supermarket. I Agree (11) - I Disagree (2)
Its a sad day for North Adams when you open up approximately 120 full & part time jobs? Yes that is a very very sad thing .
Living in Adams, I know that the one supermarket we have has high prices and poor selection. It is not always convenient to drive to Pittsfield just to grocery shop or pick up a few things. I am looking forward to having another option, even though I do agree with some of the other comments about Wal-mart. I am on the fence, the low prices do make me shop there and it will bring more jobs to the area. It\'s just too bad they won\'t be good paying jobs:(
Super WalMart may have 120 employees, but they will bring zero new jobs into the area. If the current WalMart has 80 employees, that only leaves 40 "new" jobs. Most of those will be filled by people who are laid off from other businesses that struggle to compete with the Super WalMart.
It's not a new concept, the downfall of towns that allow WalMart to get a foot hold are well documented.
Spending money at WallyWorld guarantees poor quality. And the money leaves the community. It's amazing how easily they pull the wool over the sheeple's eyes. The money goes to the 1% in Bentonville Arkansas, certainly not to the miserable employees. They struggle with minimum wage Macjobs and never are allowed fulltime work because then, Sprawlmart would have to pay benefits. MassCare pays all their healthcare bills, meaning us, the Mass taxpayers.
Boycott Walmart as much as you can.
What mom and pop store on Main Street do you think Walmart competes with? If I need groceries, toiletries, laundry detergent, I go to Walmart. If I need clothes or shoes or something of quality, I go to the mall because there really aren't any stores on the main streets to go to. If you open a clothing store or shoe store on Main Street or Park Street, I'll shop there. I think you compare apples to oranges.
Huh, the difference between those towns that had a downfall due to Walmart and our towns, is that our towns were dead long before our Walmart came in. As far as no new jobs coming in . . they will probably fill the old Walmart with a Sams Club like they do quite often. Our towns died as soon as Sprague's and GE left, period. Those jobs first went south and then left the country so they aren't coming back. Maybe some smaller sized industrial companies will open hiring 50 here 100 there. When people comment well we can't support Walmart and "factory" jobs that come in. What, you get a job at Walmart and then something better comes along and you can't change jobs, locked in for life??
Before they get an even bigger store, they need to keep up with the store they have. Every single time I go there for something, the shelves are empty.
Bigger store = More empty shelves.
Just what we need... more walmart. I already avoid that place like the plague!!! What ever happened to the small town, local supplier? Oh yah, no body wants to support their neighbor, no when you can get it cheeper at one of those "big box" stores. Just count how many small businesses have had to close up shop in the past two years. Thank you big corperation.
Okay, I just happened to surf onto this page and I wasn't going to but I feel the need to comment, first of all, I am unemployed/back in college(to gain better employment) working part-time at a grocery store for just above minimum wage and I welcome the stores,because they create competition and competition is healthy, so here is what is bothering me, you all say, shop mom and pop stores or shop local..but the retailors need to get up with the times, most of us work out of town and they close their shops at 5pm,so how can one shop their stores if they close, when walmart is open until 9pm or later? GET UP WITH THE TIMES LITTLE RETAILORS, OPEN LATER, STAY OPEN LATER SO WE CAN TRAVEL BACK TO NORTH ADAMS AND SHOP ON THE WAY HOME FROM WORK..I DIDN'T WORK IN TOWN FOR YEARS AND COULD NEVER SHOP THERE BECAUSE YOU CLOSED AT 5pm, and if your not willing to do so, then keep quiet about me going where the store hours reflect the working womens hours!
Second thing, I worked for Walmart when KMART was in north adams, guess what we had to do, go 'COMPING" PRICE COMPING, and the over-all gesture was to do it secretly and STOMP out our competitors prices..it was dirty and I did it twice and refused to do it again!!! I thought it was underhanded and walmart did get what they wanted...they stamped Kmart out. Walmart doesn't want competition and when they buy into poor communties, they don't have any. Sorry to say it, but I guess all the power to them if the other larger chains don't use the blood thirsty tactics. I do hold true to the fact that competition is a healthy thing and I for one welcome any all businesses to our communities, because lets face it, any work is better than none at all!!!
ok if I can get this security feature on here to stop wiping out my messages! I have to comment for 3rd try. Competition is healthy, and mom and pop stores/retailers need to "buck-up" and get up with the times. If your store hours end at 5pm and I am traveling to springfield or new york to work(because we have no work here) how can I patronize your store after my commute home? I can't. I am forced to go to walmart because they stay open until 9pm. I would have loved to have shopped in many of the shops in north adams over the years, but you all closed too early for the modern working woman to get into town! If you look at yourself, just a little bit please. Your prices are also too high, my pocketbook just cannot afford it! I'm sorry, I would love to come and shop with you all, but I can't! I am now unemployed, back in college(to find better employment) working part-time at a minimum wage job, I just cannot pay double for something that is less at the local walmart and then once again there is the fact that you close too early. Open your store at 11 am and stay open til 8pm.
The second thing I need to say is that I worked at walmart when kmart was here, and they made us "price comp" kmart(who would kick us out if they found out) with the over-all intention of putting them under and they succeeded. I did it twice and refused to do it again while working there, it felt to under-handed to me. You could blame walmart or you could say that kmart was not competitive enough as their prices where definitely not competitive with anyone! I think competition is healthy and the more business the better, especially since ANY JOB is better than NO JOB especially when you have kids to feed. I just want for North adams to attract more than one super store to make sure we are promoting that healthy competition!
Most large stores send people out to compare prices at competitors. That's how they "guarantee the lowest price." Even restaurants do that sometimes. It's just a business marketing technique. It works in favor of the consumer who ultimately gets a lower price on a product. With no competition, retailers can get away with charging higher prices. That is basic Marketing 101.
I applaud BARK N CAT for fostering a shelter cat until they find the animal a home. the cat that is there is OREO and he is such a sweet guy, very loving and ready to play. So stop by and visit him and maybe you will bring home a new friend if able or make a donation to help the shelter out.
