How to handle Wal-Mart

This week, the “Pot Calling Kettle Black” award goes to Sarasota’s Planning Director, Tim Litchet. In picking apart his former employee’s testimony at the Feb. 19 appeal hearing, Mr. Litchet noted that Mike Taylor was cherry-picking zoning language to make an argument that Wal-Mart does not comport with code.

We did some investigating in long, boring documents and found that Mr. Litchet has been doing some cherry-picking of his own. Here’s the deal. In Florida there is not just one legal document (zoning code), but two (Sarasota Comprehensive Plan + zoning code). In making decisions, it’s not either/or, but rather a one-two punch. The code is meant to implement the lofty goals of the comprehensive plan, which also instructs how individual buildings fit in and flow with the rest of the community beyond property lines. The comp plan comes first.

So what does the comp plan say?

• Well, the comp plan says a lot on stuff like transportation, coastal areas, open space, blah, blah, blah. We turned our attention to the chapter called “Future Land Use,” because we’re talking about Wal-Mart in the future tense.
• Did you know the city has six strategies for future land use? In 2004, the City Commission adopted “Sarasota’s Approach to Strategic Planning:”

o An attractive, environmentally-friendly community that is safe and livable and provides an array of cultural and aesthetic enjoyments.

o Viable, safe and diverse neighborhoods and businesses that work together.

o A workplace that attracts and retains an outstanding workforce.

o A responsible and accessible government that has sound financial and administrative practices.

o An economically sustainable community.

o Well maintained and future-oriented infrastructure.

• The other thing? The Wal-Mart site is the largest designated "Neighborhood Commercial” site in the entire city, though there are even larger areas for "Community Commercial” sites intended for more intense uses. The irony is, there's better direction on “Community Commercial” than “Neighborhood Commercial" regarding design and new urbanism. What to do here? Design a Wal-Mart for Community Commercial and cut it in half?  Anyone interested in this case would be smart to dig up hearings on the Southside Center on Osprey Avenue and Hillview Street (where Morton's Gourmet Market is) to see how the city described the parameters of Neighborhood Commercial.

Come on. This is one of the richest damn businesses on the planet, and Sarasota City Commissioners should feel comfortable telling Wal-Mart “we're not ready for prime time” as many times as they need to in order to get a store that fits the comp plan. If they can’t do it,  Sarasota is home to lots of architects who we bet would be willing to draw what a Wal-Mart has to look and function like under Sarasota's plans and code. This is how to handle Wal-Mart.

On another note, Wal-Mart tried to dismiss Mr. Taylor as an expert witness because he did not have official credentials called A.I.C.P. (something about "certified planner"). You know who else doesn't have A.I.C.P.? The planning directors of Washington, D.C. and San Francisco. These cities are on fire about taking planning, transportation and green building to the next level. All this under the leadership of “non-experts.”

Okay, people---what is your take on Wal-Mart, the Sarasota Comprehensive Plan and future-oriented infrastructure?