Antioch Fights Back Against Wal-Mart

Everyone seems to have their own reason for disliking Wal-Mart. In Antioch right now, it's all about the environment.

A group of environmental and labor advocates say that the town's approval of a proposed Supercenter violates its own regulations. Now, they've filed a lawsuit to force the mega-store to pay for a lengthy legal process to determine just whether it's legal. Although a Wal-Mart already exists in Antioch, the new structure would be an expansion of the existing facility.

Wal-Mart has resisted conducting an environmental study. They claim that it's unnecessary.

But environmentalists disagree, saying that recent changes to the area around the store require a re-examination of the challenges posed by construction. They also claim that city leaders have ignored public testimony that the expansion would harm public health and the economy.

The new store would be over 30,000 square feet -- or about a thousand square smoots. The existing store is much smaller, and doesn't feature a bakery, produce, or deli.

Revenue has declined for some of Wal-Marts sectors for several months, so the retailer has felt added incentive to expand.

Gigantic Wal-Marts have long been a staple of sleepy suburbs. Cities, on the other hand, are seeing smaller Wal-Marts pop up. Over the past year, the company has considered opening up more a modestly-sized store in San Francisco, although the exact location is unclear.