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Permalink Reply by JK on September 23, 2011 at 11:10am

They are going to need waaaaay more parking!

 

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Permalink Reply by Andrew Morton on September 23, 2011 at 11:50am

I've only been to the Gerrard Square Zellers once but it doesn't seem all that big; is this going to be one of those smaller-footprint 'urban' Wal-Marts that the company has been wanting to experiment with?

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Permalink Reply by Naomi Eaton on September 23, 2011 at 11:58am

I think you're right on the money.

Andrew Morton said:

I've only been to the Gerrard Square Zellers once but it doesn't seem all that big; is this going to be one of those smaller-footprint 'urban' Wal-Marts that the company has been wanting to experiment with?

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Permalink Reply by Chuck Lee on September 23, 2011 at 1:24pm

I was hoping for a Target.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Bright on September 23, 2011 at 2:43pm

This is kind of sad.  Leslieville has been battling Walmart (Smart Centre) for almost 5 years and it looks like the battle has been lost.  (http://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/news/story.cfm?content=165008)

Also will an 'urban' Walmart be just as use(less)ful as the 'urban' Home Depot at Gerrard Square (e.g. take up a  lot of space but not really have much in terms of stock, or employ people in the drywall section who have never heard of a drywall knife)? There is already not enough parking, and the parking lot is TERRIBLE in design and functionality.  Throw in a Walmart and the work done to revitalize Gerrard Square over the last few years will just go down the drain. 

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Permalink Reply by Robert Bright on September 23, 2011 at 3:53pm

Very sad. Walmart in Leslieville may well represent a sort of 'beginning of the end' to the amazing revitalisation experienced by Leslieville over the past decade.  Sub-par (mostly part-time) employment opportunities at minimum wage, lower than profitable pricing to draw in consumers that damage those products' markets (eg, cd's), and a serious threat to local businesses.

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Permalink Reply by JK on September 23, 2011 at 3:59pm

I agree with you in the case of the old proposal and I'm glad we won that battle.  In this case though, its crappy retail being replaced by slightly better crappy retail.  I'm not convinced this will be the end of Leslieville as we know it. 

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Permalink Reply by Chris B on September 23, 2011 at 4:02pm

I have to disagree with you on that one.  For one thing, Walmart coming to Gerrard Square if anything is a direct result of the Smart Centre fight.  Since the Smart Centre is not being built, Walmart had no choice but to try to find existing mall space to use to come into the city, which it did. (and don't kid yourself - Walmart was coming downtown one way or the other)  Gerrard Square is a privately owned shopping mall, and had a huge space to fill with Zellers leaving and Target didn't want that space.  They're perfectly entitled to lease that space to Walmart, and despite what some folks in our neighborhood seem to think, we don't get to dictate which retailers private shopping malls get to lease to.  Even if Target was the one coming in, all those problems you cite about parking etc would equally apply to them, and yet, if it was Target coming, there'd be dancing in the streets.

 

As for Gerrard Square's "gentfication" - have you actually been in that mall lately?  There's nothing gentrfied about it.  If anything, an "urban" Walmart will fit right in with how that mall is developing. 

 

I hope I'm wrong about this, but a lot of this anti-Walmart sentiment I keep hearing in the neighborhood sounds suspiciously like flat out snobbery to me.

Laura Bright said:

This is kind of sad.  Leslieville has been battling Walmart (Smart Centre) for almost 5 years and it looks like the battle has been lost.  (http://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/news/story.cfm?content=165008)

Also will an 'urban' Walmart be just as use(less)ful as the 'urban' Home Depot at Gerrard Square (e.g. take up a  lot of space but not really have much in terms of stock, or employ people in the drywall section who have never heard of a drywall knife)? There is already not enough parking, and the parking lot is TERRIBLE in design and functionality.  Throw in a Walmart and the work done to revitalize Gerrard Square over the last few years will just go down the drain. 

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Permalink Reply by Iain on September 23, 2011 at 4:13pm

This is great!  I can get toliet paper and paper towels after I do my Home Depot shopping.  About time they upgraded the Zeller's to a store that's actually useful.  Too bad we didn't get a Target, though.

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Permalink Reply by Robert Bright on September 23, 2011 at 5:33pm

Chris B.: You're right that Gerrard Square hasn't 'peaked out' in terms of gentrification.  But compared to what it looked like even 5 years ago, one might think it had.  I remember when Gerrard Square was called Welfare Square; and, I remember being on welfare and going to Gerrard Square for all my 'household needs.'  I hear your concern about Walmart snobbery, but I think there's a legitimate concern whenever Walmart rears its ugly head.  Maybe they will be selling the same low grade retail items that Zeller's sold; the difference is, no one was ever concerned about the Zeller's business model, while many people are concerned about Walmart's.  Perhaps there is some snobbery involved, but I really think people have a justifiable right to be concerned.

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Permalink Reply by Dave B on September 23, 2011 at 6:25pm

If you don't like Walmart simply don't shop at Walmart. Its a free market and some people like shopping at Walmart. Something was going to take the Zeller s "anchor tenant" location and unfortunately it was Walmart over Target. I can tell you, some touchy feelie mega yoga store giving out free Chia lattes was not going to open in that Zellers location no matter how cleaned up Leslieville becomes.

The Zellers at Gerrard Square is one hurting example of retail in Canada. The store is over flowing with product in some sections and lacking in others. 

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Permalink Reply by ChrisG on September 24, 2011 at 2:21pm

I have never understood the allure of Walmart. Toilet paper, cleaning supplies and toothpaste are all cheaper than other stores for sure. The rest of their inventory, no way. The same goes for Zellers. It shocks me to see people buying housewares and clothing at pretty mediocre price points considering the quality of the product. Go to the dollar store, or the Houseware store, or heck, the kiosks in the middle of the mall, and you'll find better quality for less money.

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