Dear Mr. Scott:

I am writing to urge you to open a new Wal-Mart in New York's Adirondack region. I appreciate your continued commitment to do business in New York State and hope that you will join me in that effort once more.

Recently, Ames Department Store closed its retail stores in Tupper Lake and Saranac Lake, leaving the residents of southern Franklin and St. Lawerence Counties and western Essex County with no comparable retail establishment nearby. In fact, the closest alternative is the Wal-Mart in Plattsburgh, a full hour and twenty minutes away.

The Ames closings have severely impacted the more than 20,000 full time residents in the area by further reducing their already limited shopping options. With Ames gone, residents now face new burdens in terms of time, energy and money needed just to buy basic necessities like clothing and home supplies since they need to travel an hour and a twenty minutes to the Plattsburgh store. I cannot imagine what it must be like to travel so far just to do your basic shopping. The year is 2002, not 1902, and our citizens deserve better.

The local economy relies largely on tourism, especially in the summer months when the area population doubles. The demand for a Wal-Mart in Saranac Lake is already present but becomes even greater in the summer when thousands of visitors come to the area. A new Wal-Mart would meet the needs of local consumers and would also be a viable business opportunity for you.

You might remember that in August 1999 I visited Johnstown, New York, and learned that the local economic development officials and Wal-Mart were having difficulty obtaining a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers and the US Fish & Wildlife Service, to build a distribution center in Johnstown. I personally intervened and soon after, an agreement was reached, paving the way for the distribution center to open. Today, there are close to 1,000 jobs directly linked to that distribution center, and it has been a positive addition to both the local economy and to your company.

I hope that we can team up once again to bring Wal-Mart to the Tupper Lake and Saranac Lake area. I believe this effort will prove to be mutually beneficial for both the citizens of New York and Wal-Mart. I look forward to hearing from you and to continuing our excellent working relationship.

Sincerely,
Charles E. Schumer
United States Senator