Wal-Mart won't accept agency's 'no' to store

From the St. Petersburg Times:

ST. PETERSBURG - Brighton Bay residents must gear up for another battle if they want to block the construction of a Wal-Mart supercenter in their northeast neighborhood.

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The owners of the vacant 27-acre tract on Gandy Boulevard have appealed the ruling of the Environmental Development Commission, which voted 5-2 earlier this month to reject Wal-Mart's site plan.

Now the debate will shift to the City Council, which has 60 days to hold a public hearing. The EDC's rejection means it will take a supermajority of the council - six of eight members - to overturn the ruling.

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The 150,000-square-foot supercenter would include a grocery store, garden center and a separate liquor store. Residents say the store would destroy natural wetlands and bring too much traffic to an already congested area.