Gov. Kaine, Howell urge new Va. site for Wal-Mart

RICHMOND, Va. - Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and the speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates are encouraging Wal-Mart and Orange County officials to find an alternative site for a Supercenter proposed near a Civil War battlefield.

The 138,000-square-foot store is planned near the Wilderness battlefield, which Kaine and Speaker William J. Howell said "ranks supremely important" among the many Civil War battlefields in Virginia.

"Every acre of battlefield land that is destroyed means a loss of open space and missed tourism opportunities, and it closes one more window for future generations to better understand our national story," Kaine and Howell said in the later dated July 13 to Lee Frame, chairman of the Board of Supervisors.

The letter added two more voices to a litany of opponents who have urged Wal-Mart to select another location in rural Orange County for its store. The retailer has said the site was selected after an extensive review and that it would not adversely impact the battlefield.

Wal-Mart's proposal to build in Locust Grove, less than one mile from the formal boundaries of the Wilderness battlefield, has stirred a tempest. It has drawn protests from more than 250 historians across the U.S. and a coalition of preservationists and criticism from congressmen from Texas and Vermont.

The battlefield in the county of 32,000 about 50 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., is where 29,000 Union and Confederate soldiers were injured or killed 145 years ago. It's also the place where Robert E. Lee first met Ulysses S. Grant in battle.

In a statement on Wednesday, Wal-Mart said, "We wholeheartedly agree this project presents the unique opportunity to bring the interests of battlefield preservation and smart development effectively into balance, and that is precisely what we have accomplished with our current proposal."

Supervisor Teri Pace, a critic of Wal-Mart's site selection, said it would be "disappointing to not accept such a generous offer from the state." She said it is an opportunity to protect history and "promote and enhance our future economic prosperity."

Frame, who has been careful about taking a public stand on the issue, said the letter from Kaine and Howell would be considered with other arguments when he casts his vote on the Wal-Mart proposal.

"These are important decision-makers and they've expressed an interest," Frame said. He called the state's commitment to assist the county "significant" but said the letter raised no new issues.

Preservationists welcomed the news and said it could sway the board's decision. Supervisors are believed to be leaning to approval of the special use permit Wal-Mart needs to build. A public hearing is scheduled July 27. A vote is not expected that day.

"I think that this letter is likely to be influential," said Robert Nieweg of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. "Now we have the governor of the state of Virginia and the leading Republican in our state making absolutely clear this is one of the most important places in the state of Virginia."

But Orange County residents who welcome the store have said it will generate much-need tax revenue, hundreds of jobs, and provide a shopping option closer to home.

In their letter, Kaine and Howell urged Orange County and Wal-Mart to find an alternate site beyond the Wilderness and other Civil War parks in the Fredericksburg area. The two offered the technical services of the state.

In a statement, the Civil War Preservation Trust said: "We firmly believe that encouraging Wal-Mart to move to an alternate location is in the best interests of both the National Park and Orange County residents."

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