Case Study:
WalMart in Carroll, Iowa

The typical scenario for a newly arriving Wal-Mart or other discounter is for the company to look for an inexpensive piece of agricultural property in the township just outside of a city's boundaries. This frees them from the more restrictive regulations of the city, but still allows them to compete for the downtown customer.

New WalMart built in a cornfield at fringe of city.

In Carroll, Iowa, however, the city had made a significant investment in their downtown and wanted to protect that investment. They developed a strategy of trying to attract Wal-Mart to locate its proposed new store in the central business district rather than on the city's fringe. They had built a downtown mall, using urban renewal funds, and wanted the store to contribute to its continues success.

"...the town convinced Wal-Mart to accept the city center location and agree to build the new store to complement the existing mall. As importantly, the community convinced itself that such a move was desirable to protect and enhance its investment in the central buisness district and that it is possible to stand fast and force a national chain to recognize local goals.

"...Carroll persuaded Wal-Mart to pay for 50 percent of the cost of a large new parking lot, with the agreement that everyone, not just Wal-Mart customers, could use it. Several reasons explain Carroll's ability to deal with a national volume chain on a more or less equal footing. First, the community had made major investments in the downtown, and business and government leaders alike understood and supported maintaining the investment. Then, Carroll had a high degree of community consciousness or agreement.

...The wisdom of Carroll's decision to retain and strengthen a strong city core is borne out by a recent announcement. KMart, Payless Shoe Source, Fashion Bug, Burger King and Hy-Vee (a major Iowa-based food store) have all decided to build in Carroll's central business district.¹

¹ Knox, Jerry. "Dealing with a Volume Chain Store: Carroll Iowa Guides Development and Protects Its Downtown." Small Town. September-October, 1991. pp.21-23.

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Impact of Wal-Mart	Kenneth Stone Study of Wal-Mart