Posted by: Bethany on 02/17/2008 01:16 PM
Updated by: Kim_Hamilton on 02/17/2008 05:22 PM
Expires: 01/01/2013 12:00 AM
:
Angels Teens Have Mixed Views on Potential Wal-Mart in the City ~ By Bethany Monk
Angels Camp, C.A….Although most agreed that young people in the Angels Camp and surrounding areas would like more job opportunities “and things to do,” the teens interviewed for this article had mixed reactions when asked if they wanted a Wal-Mart in the city….
Bret Harte High School students (pictured above) and other teens
in the area discuss the possibility of a "big box" store in Angels
Camp.
...On Thursday, Feb. 14, Angels Camp Planning Commissioners held and open workshop to discuss the pros and cons of allowing a “big box” store into the city. Wal-Mart has expressed interest in building a store in Angels Camp, but no further action has been taken, according to Angels Camp interim planning director Bruce Boracco. Planning Commissioners, City Council Members and a handful of community members attended Thursday’s workshop at the Fire House in Angels Camp.
“It sounds O.K.,” said Bret Harte High School sophomore Allison Westerhoff, during a brief interview after school on Friday. Bret Harte High School is located in Angels Camp, a city of less than 4,000 people. Having a Wal-Mart in Angels Camp would provide more jobs for high school students in the area and would make shopping much easier, she added.
The nearest Wal-Mart (or other big box or department stores) for Angels Camp residents include those outside the county in cities and towns including Sonora (13 miles away in Tuolumne County); Martell (24 miles away in Amador County); and Modesto (38 miles away in Stanislaus County). The nearest Wal-Mart Supercenter is in Stockton, which is almost 40 miles away in San Joaquin County.
“I would like to work there,” said Bret Harte student Jennifer Gehrman, who is in favor of having a Wal-Mart in Angels Camp. Not only would she apply to work there, having the store with in the city would be “useful.” She said driving to other counties for clothes and other items is “a really big hassle.” Items such as shampoo and conditioner and even groceries purchased within the county are quite expensive, she said.
“I think it would be cool,” said Brooke Fuller, a seventh-grader at Mark Twain Elementary School student. Mark Twain Elementary is located in Angels Camp. “Every time I visit my cousin (in Sonora) that’s all we do” is go to Wal-Mart, she said. “There’s nothing to do here.”
Her friend Emily Parkison, also a Mark Twain seventh-grader, was in favor of Angels Camp Wal-Mart as well. It would help adults save money when buying school supplies and other things for their kids, she said. Some of the negative aspects of having the store in Angels Camp, she said, is that there would be “too many people and too much traffic” in the city. “They said they were going to build that freeway and they never did.”
Ethan Masters, a Bret Harte sophomore opposes the idea of having a Wal-Mart in Angels Camp. “They break a lot of labor laws,” he said. “We can live without one for now,” he said, adding that he doesn’t mind driving out of the county to buy things. It’s not hard to gather up a group of friends and carpool out of the area for shopping excursions, he said.
For more information about upcoming meetings related to this issue, call the City of Angels Camp at (209) 736-2181 or visit www.cityofangels.org.
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