Survey says New Yorkers want Walmart

New Yorkers know what’s best for them – and they believe what’s best for them is a Walmart.
Close to 70 percent of city voters said that they would shop at the mega-chain store if it were convenient, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released on July 28.
But it’s not all good news for Walmart. Many New Yorkers said they believe the negative press surrounding the retail giant, with 70 percent agreeing that Walmart’s lower prices hurt smaller businesses and 51 percent agreeing that it doesn’t pay its workers enough.
Still, 72 percent agree that Walmart’s lower prices will benefit New York at large.
“Support for allowing Walmart to open in the Big Apple is growing, while the number of would-be shoppers remains constant at more than 2-1,” said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “Voters agree with both the negative and positive claims made about the retail giant, but even in union households, New Yorkers say a bargain’s a bargain.”
As for the city officials who want to block Walmart from opening a site in the city, 63 percent of residents are saying “step aside.”
Currently, city residents have to travel east to Walmart stores in Valley Stream, Farmingdale, Westbury, Uniondale, Massapequa and East Meadow on Long Island; north, to White Plains in Westchester; or west, to New Jersey outlets in Secaucus, North Bergen, Garfield, Kearny and Saddle Brook.
Steve Restivo, senior director of community affairs for Walmart, said that these results send a clear message that New Yorkers want to shop at the chain.
“It’s obvious that the more people learn the facts about our company, the more they see the value in bringing a store to their neighborhood that creates quality jobs and offers affordable groceries,” he said. “Here’s the other thing that’s clear: they don’t want a handful of union front groups telling them where they can and can’t shop.”
Walmart has faced general union opposition since it first tried to break into the city in 2005.