Watching Walmart: The world's largest retailer has officially applied for a building permit to begin work on the first of its stores in the District. The Walmart on Georgia Avenue was the first one the company put in paperwork for. Why now? Perhaps because applying for a permit before Dec. 31 means the District's Green Buildings Act won't apply to it—which means the construction won't have to meet tighter standards for energy efficiency. Always low prices (and high carbon footprints)! -2

No Food For You: Food trucks have taken over the city in the last few years, with just about every kind of food imaginable available from someone on wheels. Less mobile restaurants haven't always appreciated the trend. Now it looks like the District government is taking a side: The Department of Public Works has set up a special unit to give parking tickets to food trucks, issuing 68 since October. Expect the price on your lobster roll to go up if that continues. -1

Drink And Cab: 'Tis the season for getting hammered at after-work holiday parties (or during the day while your office is closed). Which means free taxi service is back! The SoberRide program returned this month for its 18th year; anyone over 21 can get a lift home by calling 1-800-200-8294—that's TAXI—instead of riding Metro or biking home drunk. (We know none of you would even consider driving drunk, so we'll assume SoberRide is, rather, an alternative to those other options.) You can take it anywhere you want, but if the fare is over $30, the balance is on you. Which Luke Russert might want to keep in mind. +1

We Report, You Decide: A grant for the IHOP in Columbia Heights is quickly becoming the latest symbol of government waste. Not for the reason Washington City Paper raised last year—that hundreds of thousands of dollars for "local businesses" were going instead to a franchise of a national chain—but because Sen. Tom Coburn, an Oklahoma Republican, highlighted the grant in his annual report on waste. (Which Coburn more or less defines as "everything the government spends money on.") Coburn's write-up linked to an Examiner report, which argued that Columbia Heights is essentially too yuppified to get any government support. Today's twist: A Fox News Channel staffer is apparently working on a piece on the pancake house. With any luck, he won't find this old Post story on new residents complaining that the neighborhood doesn't have a Whole Foods. -1

Yesterday's Needle rating: 63 Today's score: -3 Today's Needle rating: 60

Looks like folks who are in favor of more grocery choices and competition in Skyland are going to get it. District lawyers say the plot of land Walmart is planning to use for the Ward 7 store is not restricted by Safeway's covenant with the city to prevent competition:

City officials, including Deputy Mayor Victor L. Hoskins, initially said [the covenant] was an issue they were working through, but now say they are interpreting the covenant as not applying to a lot where a Wal-Mart store would be built.

The Office of the Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development received an opinion Wednesday from attorneys in the Office of the Attorney General, said Jose C. Sousa, a spokesman for Hoskins.

Rappaport Cos, the lead developer of the Skyland site, previously submitted a design for the land that was city-approved and places a “big box” store on the lot. The covenant would apply to two other lots, Sousa said. “This covenant may apply to other possible retail users in the future,” he wrote in an e-mail.

Of course, that's only one side's version of the covenant. According to the Post, Safeway is staying mum for the moment.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

“We want to be cooperative, but there is a reason that the covenant is in place to protect our interests,” said Craig Muckle, Safeway’s manager of public affairs and government relations.

At the news conference to announce Wal-Mart’s new plans, Gray said the Wal-Mart stores would help address unemployment — by bringing in about 1,800 jobs — and “food deserts.”

But Muckle said the Ward 7 area where the Wal-Mart is planned may become an oasis that can’t handle two grocers. Such proximity may not be as unusual in the suburbs, where traffic patterns could necessitate and support competing nearby stores, he said.

“In the city, with one possible exception, there is no grocery store directly across the street from another grocery store,” he said. “In a city, basically you’re looking at a store coming in a neighborhood. To have more than one . . . someone may survive; someone may not.”

I was at the Skyland Safeway a couple of weeks ago doing some reporting, and by my observation, the clientele seemed largely middle-class. Shops like the Anacostia Warehouse Supermarket, which was about a mile away and a lot like an overgrown corner store, may actually have more to fear from a coming Walmart. Gray could argue that since, unlike Safeway, Walmart is well known for its appeal to lower-income families, it's more likely that the folks who don't shop at Safeway anyway will be heading to a fresh new Walmart supercenter.

Then again, considering that everyone is trying to make their dollars stretch these days, Safeway may be in trouble, too.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

So, it finally happened: Yesterday, Walmart and the mayor's office announced the community benefits agreement—except termed a "community partnership initiative"—that Vince Gray had long promised as a way of creating the impression that he was actually trying to get the retailer to commit to anything upon its entry into the city. The cynics among us never expected it to amount to anything, really. And they were right: Every bullet point in the five-page document is either something Walmart is required to do by law, something it had already committed to do in earlier discussions, or something that commits it to absolutely nothing.

Creating and funding a retail job training program? Done. Transportation demand management measures like Bikeshare stations? Already negotiated as part of the large tract review process. Job fairs, inclusion of small businesses within the store, and the promise to not sell guns? Announced on day one. It's great Walmart says it will do those things, but the Mayor got not one iota more from the company out of his super-secret negotiations over the last year.

Read the rest at Housing Complex.

Always Low Prices On Guns: It turned out Walmart didn't need much of a hard sell to get D.C. government officials to welcome them to town; the only argument the city's really putting up so far is about whether they'll deign to give us four stores, or five, not about whether they'll do things like, oh, pay reasonable wages, not lock workers in the stores overnight, and generally avoid disrupting existing businesses. But one concession the Bentonville gang had made was that, in deference to the District's gun laws, their stores wouldn't sell firearms. Now the city seems to be trying to get them to undo that, too. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier says it "makes a lot of sense" for Walmart to sell guns in D.C. When can we just go ahead and rename the Wilson Building for Sam Walton? -3

The Name Game: Some Metro stations have easy names—think "Metro Center," or "Dupont Circle." Others have complicated ones, like "Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan," or "Vienna/Fairfax-GMU." The complicated names may be on their way out; Metro officials have decided to lop off most add-ons and relegate them to subtitles, based on a series of focus groups with riders. Meanwhile, the Washington Nationals still want to add a curly "W" to the Navy Yard station on the Green Line, which riders liked. Must have done the focus groups during the recent winning streak. +2

Federal Express: Typically, it's considered bad news when any top city officials are under investigation by federal authorities. Here in D.C., we've got a whole bunch. Council Chairman Kwame "Fully Loaded" Brown's 2008 campaign finance reports have been referred to the FBI and federal prosecutors; the feds are already looking into allegations against Mayor Vince Gray (though we suspect that investigation isn't going anywhere) and Ward 5 Councilmember Harry Thomas Jr., and they tried to bribe Ward 1's Jim Graham already, too. At this rate, they'll be able to get a quorum together at the FBI headquarters. -3

The Future... Is Now: Trains on Metrorail have looked like relics from the 1970s since, well, the 1970s. So it'll take some getting used to the fancy new design officials unveiled today. Gone are the orange and yellow seats and brown carpets, replaced by blue seats and dark stone-looking floors. The new trains will roll out in the next two to five years. The system is also allowing riders to add money to their SmarTrip cards online, instead of having to use the farecard machines in stations to do it. Lest we all be overwhelmed by too much progress too fast, that one's just a pilot program for now. +2

Yesterday's Needle rating: 52 Today's score: -2 Today's Needle rating: 50

In this week's cover story, Lydia DePillis examines the big fight Walmart didn't encounter in wooing D.C.

For a photo gallery from a Walmart in Alexandria, click here.

Fully Responsible: D.C. Council Chairman Kwame Brown is finally showing signs of realizing that ordering two high-end SUVs in the middle of a budget crunch might not be the key to everlasting gratitude among his constituents. He's e-mailing District residents who complain about the Lincoln Navigators to take "full responsibility" for the lease deal. Of course, since he says the deals weren't his fault, but instead blames rogue staffers, it's not clear Brown knows what "full responsibility" actually means. But hey! It's a start. -3

Gun Shy: Every manner of nightmare has been predicted for whenever Walmart finally opens its doors in the District—from mom and pop stores closing up to wages plummeting almost immediately. All of that may or may not still come to pass. But at least the city's unlicensed arms dealers won't have to worry about black market prices being undercut: Walmart won't sell guns here. No word on whether they'll sell censored CDs. +2

Snow Job: Another winter storm, another day after wondering what happened to all the snow—it's the story of D.C.'s winter so far this season. Last night, the forecast called for doom and gloom, and instead, Washingtonians awoke to find an inch or so of sleet on the streets (and schools delayed two hours). What went wrong? There are plenty of meteorological explanations; suffice it to say we think the extra greenhouse gases emitted by Kwame Brown's second Lincoln Navigator played a part, too. +1

Book Bonanza: Any luddites who, like us, haven't yet ditched paper books for e-reader files should make their way post-haste to the vicinity of Farragut North. The Borders at 18th and L streets NW is, evidently, all but giving away its inventory, liquidating ahead of bankruptcy proceedings. Magazines are 40 percent off. Which means you can pick up this week's Washington City Paper there for 40 percent of the usual $0! +2

Yesterday's Needle rating: 40 Today's score: +2 Today's Needle rating: 42

Thundersnow!: The D.C. snow hole is, officially, kaput. A storm rolling through the region this evening is forecast to deliver between 4-8 inches of snow in the city, and more in the suburbs, with snow piling up 1-2 inches per hour at times. Thunder and lightning may accompany the snow, which apparently means the end of the world in certain cultures. Namely, those cultures in charge of the federal government, local school systems and colleges, and just about anything else scheduled for tonight, which all pretty much shut down. The U.S. will get right back to winning the future—as long as it can wait until the roads are plowed. -2

Always Low Prices (And Civil War Graves): 147 years ago, Union troops under Ulysses S. Grant first faced off against Confederate soldiers commanded by Robert E. Lee in the Battle of the Wilderness, near Orange, Va. Which means, naturally, that Orange, Va., seemed like a pretty good place to sell a lot of mass-produced imported consumer goods. That was the plan, at least, until today, when Wal-Mart Stores Inc. backed off an unpopular crusade to build a store on land used in the battle. Opponents of Walmarts here in the District take note: Fort Stevens isn't far away from the Ward 4 location. +1

Ladyhawk: If most businesses were trying to capture an animal on the loose in their establishment, they'd call an exterminator. The Library of Congress had access to more powerful tools, and so it came to pass that the Fish and Wildlife Service helped track down a hawk living in the Main Reading Room after several days. The hawk, named Jefferson by the librarians, was emaciated and dehydrated, but otherwise unharmed. Which means, apparently, that there is not a mouse infestation at the Library of Congress. +1

Pre-Planned, Spontaneous Official Fun: Last winter's blizzards started a new tradition in the District—snowball fights organized by Twitter and Facebook, for any myopic little twits with good arms. (And for D.C. cops with arms, period.) The tradition returns tonight: "The Official Dupont Circle Snowball Fight" is up and running. Organizers advise bringing protective gear, not throwing ice, and not hitting moving vehicles. We advise that if you need instructions on how to attend a snowball fight, you probably shouldn't go. +3

Yesterday's Needle rating: 43 Today's score: +3 Today's Needle rating: 46

Shepherd Park's listserv has actually had a healthy debate on Walmart potentially moving into the old dealership lot at Missouri and Georgia. But one resident sticks out—she claims that she may have gotten polled by Walmart. It's pretty interesting, and not unusual considering the company has already set up its own propaganda website. The resident writes:

"I recently responded to a telephone survey that no doubt was commissioned by Walmart. Without identifying a particular retailer the questioner asked if I would favor new retail that would offer 2000 jobs in DC and provide low prices on pharmaceuticals, food, clothing and the like. I was told that the stores would not be big-box but scaled to residential areas. Then I was asked to rate several retailers including Kmart Walmart and Target. I was suspicious and felt it was one of those "push surveys" that aren't really about polling but building a favorable impression of the business that commissioned the survey. Did others in our neighborhood get a call, too?"

Debate after the jump!

Here's a sampling of opinion from the listserv:

"Without commenting on the merits – or lack thereof – of the Walmart project itself, I think it is worth pointing out that much of the traffic congestion on 14th near the Target development stems from poor traffic engineering that resulted in one lane of thru traffic in both directions for much of that stretch.  If a Walmart, or any other major project, were to be approved for the Curtis site, the city would have to come up with a much better traffic design than was implemented on 14th St. in Columbia Heights.
Ralph"

"ANC's or community leaders are not the only people in ward 4...EVERYONE should be included before we hear about Walmart's next move via news reports! Walmart doesn't announce that they are coming without aready receiving approval to do so!

Cherita Whiting"

"Huge box store- not interested

More traffic on Georgia Ave, especially at the already congested GA Ave/ Military Rd intersection- not interested More traffic racing through our back streets trying to get to said store- not interested Money definetely leaving not only the neighborhood but the city- not interested Additional stress put on the new crop of small businesses that are trying to revitalize Georgia Ave- not interested

While I like Costco and Walmart (in open, suburban settings), I'm not sure we need them in our neighborhood. If Walmart moves in, it may improve that one or two blocks adjacent to the new store but it will KILL all the other small businesses that line Georgia Ave from Silver Spring to Howard University. I've seen one Walmart kill all the business in a small town and all around for miles. We don't want to see that here.  Part of Ward 4's (and DC's) flavor is the variety of small business available on GA Ave.  Besides, we already have one super-size box store at 14th and Park Rd (the Target retail complex). We don't want the traffic issues that sort of business brings to an area.

Samuel"

"Wal-Mart destroyed my hometown's main street (small town in Oklahoma, population 13,000).   What was once a thriving business community now looks like Dresden after WWII.  Wal-Mart is rapacious...  If the employees ever have the courage successfully to organize and unionize, Wal-Mart will just close the store; that happened in Quebec.  Besides, if I want cheap, Made-in-China crap, I can always go to a Dollar Store.

Doug in Takoma,

a former union steward, who does NOT like Wal-Mart"

"I have read many points of view on this matter the past few days. I have read misinterpretation; fear mongering, hopefulness, accusations, and calls for genuine thoughtful discourse. What I haven't read is what people want to see at the Curtis site (or any other site for that matter). I see a sad trend repeating itself. We are a community of NO. We react negatively to any type of development. The previous plans for the Curtis site, mixed-use retail as I recall, was similarly criticized. If critics in the community spent as much time offering alternative visions of what they want on the Avenue, as they do rejecting plans summarily, I'd feel more comfortable with their points of view.

Maybe the neighborhood communities need get together to create their own Georgia Avenue "Master Plan" and present it to the Office of Planning. Being reactionary doesn't seem to be working.

Andre on 9th St."

"Shepherd Park Neighbors,

In my humble opinion, I don't think a Wal-Mart in the area would be a bad
idea if we can get some reassurances from the concerns expressed on this issue. If we can strongly request that Wal-Mart becomes a good corporate neighbor I think it can be a win for everyone concerned.

I am tired of constantly taking my money out of the city to the suburbs to get the day to day items needed for my household. I would rather spend that money inside the city an increase our own tax base and to have it used for our city services and programs.

I know that Wal-Mart can be a magnet of controversy, but I also believe with proper oversight and a strong commitment from our leaders and Wal-Mart that it can be a vision of stability within the community.

Steward"

The usual fight against the chain’s arrival may be tempered here, both by a certain fatalism—they’re coming, whether we like it or not—but also by a growing realization on the part of District officials and citizens that they could have a chance to try to bring Wal-Mart into an urbanist framework, as crazy as that sounds. Can D.C. find a middle ground between the kneejerk NIMBYism and the blind pro-business boosterism that often greets a Walmart expansion?

Read the whole story here.

Parking Lot, Fairfax Virginia, May 29

Today is the day when people get trampled to death at retail outlets in America in the rush to save money on big-screen TVs and other must-have items (sometimes, there are also shootings). My mother-in-law got up at some ungodly hour one year to save a few dollars on a DVD player that wasn't even a brand name and which I'm pretty sure was busted within a few days. This seems like a good use of time to me.

The big news about Walmart, where last year's tragic trampling took place, is that the retailer decided to remain open for 24 hours so the mob that normally forms outside in the parking lot ready to bust down the doors would instead be dispersed inside, ready to form a mob once again when the really, really good prices went into effect at 5 a.m. It may seem a sad commentary on the state of society that the best way to keep people from trampling other people to death in a store is to never close the store—but whatever helps.

The Black Friday websites—BFads.net; blackfriday2009.com; PC World has a list of the top 10—have been obsessively and compulsively tracking deals just for you on everything from vacuum cleaners (a refurb Dyson DC14 Steel/White All-floor vacuum, $235.99, you save $153.95) to handguns (Gander Mountain's Ruger Semi-Automatic Pistol, $249.99, you save $150). If you've been taking this seriously, you have had these deals delivered straight to your Twitter feed. And you've already been up taking advantage of the all "Doorbuster" deals, which seems an especially good name for the whole thing, especially if we're trying to cut down on the number of fatalities involving people going from one side of a door to the other.

There are entire discussion forums on the ins and outs of Black Friday, with commentary on the hottest toys of 2009, including Zhu Zhu Pets, voted the "Holy Grail" of this year's BF by PunkyBearToys.com. "Zhu Zhu pets , jesus h christmas are they hard to find," reads the title of one post by a frustrated mrbill317: "Well the ebay hoarders have made this near impossible to find for my 7year old. My Walmart has received NO stock in 2 months of these rodents , they have had an empty shelf for so long other crap is placed in it with the tags staying the same lol."

Bigboots2007 sought advice on the optimum time to arrive at Target to secure a deal on a Sonicare toothbrush (I don't think this was my mother-in-law). Reply to bigboots: "Whatever time they open." Reply from bigboots: "Thats what I figured."

By the time of this posting, no deaths had been reported.

This past weekend, I visited a Wal-Mart in Tappahannock, Va. Or maybe I went to a Walmart. Signage inside and outside the store spelled the chain's name all closed up, with the "m" lowercased. But many of the products I looked at also stated they were distributed by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. This is the kind of thing that drives copy editors coconuts!

So I called Wal-Mart/Walmart this morning. All the media relations people were in a meeting, which if you work for a small newspaper is more or less where they will always be when you call.

The person I spoke to, who I cannot quote by name because this individual is not an official media relations person, told me that the store should be referred to as "Walmart" in stories.

"The store is one word," this person told me. I asked about the company's Web site, which on many pages refers to "Wal-Mart" in the title bar but "Walmart" below the buttons. "It's all moving to one word, but for legal purposes it's two words," the person who is not an official spokesperson told me. I asked if the company had issued a press release on this matter, and the nonofficial spokesperson assured me they had. Three hours ago, that person told me an official press spokesperson would call me back, which I expect to happen sometime in 2011, or maybe after this post goes up.

Here is what I found on Wal-Mart/Walmart's page of press releases: 28 instances where the stores or the corporation are referred to as "Wal-Mart." Eighty references to "Walmart." (I didn't count walmart.com.)

If this is a rebranding, it seems uncharacteristically inept for a chain of this size. AP style on the mega-chain is Wal-Mart, which unlike the store's logo, has not changed (see below). Until Wal-Mart applies a little internal consistency, I don't see any reason to break it. Wal-Mart: I would love to hear from you: 202-332-2100 x.249/abeaujon@washcp.com.

UPDATE, 12:37 P.M.: Mark Allen, who knows more about AP style than anyone on this planet, Twitters me: "@abeaujon Great blog. AP updated this online last month: 'Wal-Mart Stores Inc. [for the] company ... . Use Walmart [for the] stores.'"

UPDATE, 2:49 P.M.: E.R. Anderson, the regional media director for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., writes me to say:

Walmart’s U.S. locations have update store logos as part of an ongoing evolution of its brand – you may have seen this in store signage and recent print advertisements and TV commercials.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is the legal trade name of the corporation. The name "Walmart," expressed as one word and without punctuation, is a trademark of the company and is used analogously to describe the company and its stores. Use the trade name when it is necessary to identify the legal entity, such as when reporting financial results, litigation or corporate governance.

I look at it that Wal-Mart Stores, Inc is our legal name and Walmart is our nickname. Elizabeth is my given name but everyone calls me E.R. Does that make sense?

Yes, it makes sense, but I think this is a problem, copy-wise, as is the AP's new rule. I think it's gonna make copy look sloppy; e.g., when a band like Kiss does a deal with Wal-Mart to sell its new album exclusively in Walmart. I say: Until the evolution is complete, keep the hypen!

Twilight, that suckalicious sparkling-vampire movie starring Robert Pattinson (eeeee!) and Kristen Stewart (Bella!), is out on DVD tomorrow. But it's not any ol' DVD release: It's a two-disc Special Edition DVD, and it's going on sale in just less than 12 hours, complete with parties at Borders, Walmart, and Blockbuster locations across the country officially starting at 10 p.m.

Certainly, though, the lines will form much, much earlier. Especially considering that the Twilight folks have not only promised plenty o' giveaways, but "Twilight actors and filmmakers will be making surprise appearances at select locations throughout the country!"

And if those facts don't make you faint, you'll certain need a splash of water to the face and a cookie if you decide to give plasma at one of the blood drives select Walmarts will host. It's unclear whether the Clinton, Md., store — apparently the only Walmart throwing a Twilight party — will be participating.

For more information and to find the location of the nearest screechfest, go to twilightthemovie.com.

• Jesse Finfrock of Mother Jones recently interviewed Robert King, who was released after 29 years in solitary confinement when a judge reversed his conviction in 2001. An excerpt: "In 1972, King was assigned to solitary confinement (for allegedly plotting to kill a guard—a murder that occurred before he arrived at Angola), where he would ultimately spend 29 years. Ensconced 23 hours a day in a 6-by-9-foot cell, King kept himself busy reading, writing, studying law—and experimenting with pralines. He fashioned a cook pot out of segments of soda cans stacked together like a chimney. For fuel, he wrapped lengths of toilet paper into tight rings, tucked the ends in on themselves, and lit them under his makeshift stove. All of this took place on the edge of his toilet; he could easily knock the whole contraption into the bowl to avoid being busted for contraband. For the most part, the guards looked the other way."
• Jack Shafer calls out WaPo for sensationalizing a recent story about PCP: "Although PCP has long been part of the area's drugscape, the Post has rarely done more than accept police department and prosecutor handouts in reporting on the topic. For instance, if the police declare a "street value" for a quantity of seized PCP, the Post automatically publishes it."
• Recent reports from Time Out Chicago and East Bay Express suggest that Yelp.com, a site that features user-generated reviews of businesses, punishes companies that refuse to advertise on the Yelp site by deleting or misplacing positive reviews: "'Nicholas Paul, an instructor at an art studio in Chicago (which did not want to be named for fear of retribution) and who handles the studio’s advertising, said that Yelp approached him to advertise starting in July of 2008. After he turned them down, ‘then all of a sudden three of our positives disappeared and then we got two negative ones,’ he said. Of the original thirteen reviews they had, only eight now remain, four of which are negative. Paul says the sales rep told him he could control that. ‘We could basically adjust the way our reviews are read,’ Paul said the rep told him. ‘We could highlight the ones we wanted and put the ones we didn’t want on the backburner.’”
• AIG isn't the only company giving out big bonuses in the midst of a recession: "Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) is making its largest ever annual award to employees, handing out roughly $2 billion to its rank and file U.S. workers through measures including bonuses, profit sharing and discounts. The financial incentives for hourly workers include $933.6 million in bonuses that the retailer is handing out Thursday. There is another $788.8 million in profit sharing and 401(k) contributions, and hundreds of millions of dollars in merchandise discounts and contributions to the employees' stock purchase plan, said Chief Executive Mike Duke in a memo to employees Thursday....The bonus averages $933.60 for each qualified employee, ranging from cashiers to shelf stockers."[H/t Katherine Mangu-Ward]
• Mark Jenkins, the mastermind behind D.C.'s stuffed-bear installations, made it on NY's Wooster Collective blog.

That's it for me, folks. Have yourselves a nice weekend.