Chicago Loses Daley - Will Chicago Lose Wal-Mart?

For the past 20 years, Chicagoans have had a love/hate relationship with Mayor Richard M. Daley. Mr. Daley is responsible for the resurgence of one of the U.S.'s largest metropolitan cities. Some of his accomplishments include the modernization of the Chicago Transit Authority, construction of Millennium Park, and the mayoral takeover of Chicago Public Schools.

After a long and illustrious career, Richard M. Daley decided not to run for re-election. Daley stated his choice was," a personal decision, no more, no less." Although Daley has had a great career, he has been faced with difficult setbacks. Chicago's failed bid for the 2016 Olympic Games and the Chicago's handgun ban overturn by the U.S. Supreme Court are a few.

With his departure, the political landscape is changing. Now enter the behemoth from Bentonville. Wal-Mart has attempted to enter Chicago for years, even facing opposition from Dailey. He vetoed a big box ordinance which led to the first Wal-mart within Chicago. In June, Dailey and Wal-Mart became bedfellows when the road was cleared for an additional Wal-Mart to be built.

Wal-mart has made plans to build dozens of stores and provide thousands of jobs to the residents of Chicago. By doing this, Wal-Mart will increase sales by nearly $1 billion. Now with Dailey deciding to retire, where does this leave Wal-mart?

The scope of the political landscape will be shaped by his successor. Will Richard M. Daley's successor rely on organized labor to halt further Wal-Marts of partner with them, as did Daley, to push forward with growth? Chicago is one of the nation's largest areas for organized labor and Wal-Mart has always been anti-union.

The city of Chigago is in need of a leader who can command respect as Richard M. Daley has done over the past two decades. Chigago is looking for ways to get out of the negative spotlight. With sales of nearly $1 billion and hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax revenues potentially being left on the table, Daley's successor has a tough road ahead.

Source: chicagobusiness.com

Source: news.yahoo.com

Source: walmartstores.com