Item B - Big Box Stores Control - Laserfiche WebLink

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demands were generalized, these retailers respond with retail products that are specialized and not interchangeable (i.e., ink jet cartridges). These retailers can utilize 50,000- 120,000 square feet. 3. Mass Merchandizing - This refers to retailers offering a broad range of general retail needs without the depth of individual product selection referred to in specialty retail. Target, Wal-Mart, and Shopko are examples of this type of retail. The size of these facilities can range from 100,000-160,000 square feet. 4. Warehouse Clubs - These stores provide bulk and mass merchandizing with limited selection and deep discounts generally based upon volume purchase. Interior finishes are industrial and mass product storage is overhead of the display area. Product delivery is done via pallet, minimizing labor costs. These membership clubs, resembling a big box, occupy an area of about 200,000 square feet. It is important to note that vertical use of space is utilized in a big box. Wide aisle widths are typical in a warehouse club. 5. Superstores - Superstores are the most recent retail development generating the social and political dialogue in retailing. These are represented by Wal-Mart Superstores, Super Targets, and Fred Meyer Superstores. These represent the traditional mass merchandisers' expansion into food service. This is resulting in expansions of 60,000 square feet to a total of about 220,000 square feet. The recent expansion of the Wal-Mart (on West 11th) to superstore status has generated the recent public dialogue about "Big Boxes." How communities are responding to this most recent retail expansion is discussed in the following environmental scan. Environmental Scan Any random internet search can present a mass of information relating to local government regulation of supercenters. Additionally, literature supporting or opposing the emergence of supercenters can be found. Generally, land use issues fall into the following categories: · Mass and Scale (aesthetics) · Adaptive Reuse · Noise and Glare (operations) · Parking · Land use separation Two non-land use issues that are heavily debated in conjunction with superstores are: · Economic Development · Labor In regard to the land use issues, the issue of aesthetics is most easily addressed through a code. Roof and elevation treatments can be defined through code requirements and mitigated through architectural means. Our current code provides requirements for such concerns (Section 9.2173), and was adopted concurrent with the comprehensive zoning code update.