Walmart's Impending Demise Means Bargains

The last rites for a Walmart store are not a quiet affair. Prices are slashed and customers are giddy over the bargains to be had.

That's happening now at the store on Diamond Hill Road, which is slated to close on Tuesday, Sept. 13. Saturday was the last sunny day off this summer, and not a day to be spent schlepping down store aisles, yet the clearance mark downs kept the parking lot halfway crowded.

"They're having some good sales," said Blackstone resident Mike Clemer, as he loaded purchases into his car. "We saved forty bucks on a TV. A lot of the shelves are already empty, but they've got stuff in the back. If you don't see something, ask. They'll probably be able to
bring it out."

Walmart is on its Woonsocket shop to make way for a bigger operation in nearby North Smithfield. Walmart workers have spent the past several weeks filling shelves at the new site at Dowling Village, a retail center on Eddie Dowling Highway, and the grand opening is scheduled for 8 a.m., Sept. 14, one day after the old store's demise.

The new store will be open 24 hours a day, and will feature a fully-stocked grocery section and 200,000 square feet of floor space, close to three times the amount found at the soon-to-be-closed site.

Workers at the Woonsocket store were encouraged to apply for jobs in North Smithfield, and many have done so.

Matthew Wojcik, the city's director of economic development, has dismissed rumors that the city will lose tax revenue when the store closes. "It continues to be a taxable property," he said in an interview last week, adding that Walmart will have to pay taxes to Woonsocket until the property is sold. "And they didn't lay off employees. We're glad about that."

The closing, Wojcik noted, could create some inconvenience for those shoppers who walk to the store. "That's a quality-of-life issue," he said. "The only other negative impact I can see is that Walmart has been viewed as the driver for auto traffic up and down Diamond
Hill. It remains to be seen how this will impact other stores."

But Wojcik also pointed out that through the decades other discount department stores have come and gone on Diamond Hill, with no great decline in customer traffic. The retail district has two supermarkets and a store, and all of them are thriving. There are rumors, however, the is mulling a move to Dowling Village, which could spell the end for its Diamond Hill operation. The retailer is not commenting, according to Wojcik.

There's also the possibility that Walmart could someday reopen the Woonsocket store. Wojcik pointed out that the location is no further from the company's warehouses than the North Smithfield site, which could mean operating two stores in the area would be economically viable.

"They told me they anticipate being open in North Smithfield 12 to 14 months before they make a decision on the Woonsocket property," he said. "The notion that Walmart never has two stores within five miles of each other is no longer true.  If they ever reopen in Woonsocket, it would probably be with a modified floor plan."

There's also the possibility Walmart will sell or lease the property to another retail chain.

Shoppers who arrived at the Diamond Hill store on Saturday had mixed feelings about the move. Those who live near Dowling Village were enthusiastic. Some who live closer to Diamond Hill expressed annoyance.

"This spot is near my house. I'm here three or four times a week," said Milosis Degrazia of Woonsocket. "I don't want it to close."

Everyone, however, was talking about the clearance sales iside. Friends Kelly Lafleur and Lisa Duquette found some bargains.

"These were a buck each," said Lafleur, holding up some plastic storage boxes. "We'll use them in the kids' rooms."

Ann Marie Metz, also of Blackstone, however, shopped with a jaundiced eye. "There are some savings, but you have to look," she said. "Not everything is marked down."

Lewis Downing and his sons, Jared, 8, and Colby, 3, stocked up on Capri Sunshine juice boxes, on sale for $1.97 a case. "I don't really know if that's a bargain," Downing admitted. "My wife usually does the shopping."

Inside the store, shoppers were greeted by a forest of signs announcing mark downs. Men's shirts were selling for $3 and $5. There were women's shorts and tee hirts for $7. No-name brand disposable diapers --usually marked $14.55 -- were selling for $8.87. Rival microwave ovens were priced $55; and 16-pound bags of Meow Mix, $12.

Many shelves were empty, especially in the sections for electronics and recreational gear. A sign announcing "50 percent off" was attached to a rack for BMX bicycles, but there wasn't a single bike be found.

The move to Dowling Village means Walmart may lose a celebrity customer, Scott Brown, the US senator and Republican rising star. When he ran for state senate in 2004, the Wrentham resident told reporters he spent a lot of time in nearby Franklin, which was part of the district. He noted that while running errands, he sometimes stopped at Walmart to buy pet supplies. When told there is no Walmart in Franklin, Brown said he must have meant the Woonsocket store.

That's not only a different district, it's a different state.