Texas
Related: About this forumFor Edna, Texas, Walmart Leaving Is A Turning Point
In big cities, businesses open and close all the time usually with little fanfare. But when a retailer leaves a small town, its big news. Small town economies are fragile, and even one business packing its bags could spell major problems for locals. And thats exactly whats happening in Edna, Texas.
Edna is a town of a little less than 6,000 people. Its located in Jackson County, 100 miles southwest of Houston. The area is mostly rural farmers grow crops like cotton, corn and rice. And before we get to whats happening in Edna today, let me tell you about what used to happen in Edna.
Joe Hermes has lived in Edna for over 60 years, and hes been the towns mayor for the last 32.
When I was a youngster, the stores in this town stayed open on Saturdays from 7 in the morning to 10 at night, Hermes says. And people from outside the city would come in at 6:30 in the morning to get a parking place on Main Street. And theyd stay in town until 10 at night. People would sit on the hoods of their cars and as people walked up and down have big conversations. I mean, it was a different world.
Read more: http://kut.org/post/edna-texas-walmart-leaving-turning-point
beachbum bob
(10,437 posts)democratic campaign issue for sure. Connect with the rural voter in any way possible. Rural health hospitals and clinics closing due to republicans and trump, another attack on the rural voter
mercuryblues
(14,491 posts)here. Small town, lots of Mom and Pop businesses. WM came in and undercut them. They all closed within 2 years. Then WM closed about 10 years later. They said it wasn't profitable. What they meant was it wasn't profitable ENOUGH.
Years later the small businesses haven't come back. WM sits there, rotting and abandoned. They were an anchor store in a strip mall. After they closed some of the other stores also ended up closing because the foot traffic was gone.