Walmart barrier

[palebluedot]

I passed by the local Super Walmart today and noticed they had installed metal overhead obstacles limiting only vehicles under 12 ft 0 in. to enter the parking lot. I wondered, since most 5ers & MH is over this height, if it was meant to exclude RVs. Have anyone noticed this at other Wallys?

[DHenry]

There are signs posted at the Walmart in Windsor, CA that over night parking is prohibited. The town of Windsor does not want to have anyone staying overnight in the parking lots.

[vickir]

We've seen it too in several states ... just can't remember where (CRS strikes again!). It's not terribly subtle, is it? Apparently they're not too concerned about the business they will lose from RVers who can't get in!

[Parrothead]

I read an article somewhere about this. It is local ordinances not WalMart. The article also stated it was not the one nighters that were causing the problem but people who camped out for weeks, begged from customers, urinated on the bushes and allowed their pets to do their business and didn't clean it up. So as is often the case, the multitude pay for the sins of a few.

[ragdoll]

palebluedot - was this super Wally World in MS? We past or actually stopped at one in the spring of 2003 going into it through the truck entrance and had to walk quite a distance around to the front doors. After shopping we complained and were told that we could have come straight through the truck entrance around the building to the parking lot - who would know as one doesn't want to get stuck and have to back 100 plus feet when you are new to rving or worse yet getting trapped by a big rig. No signs saying rvers weren't allowed to park but sure makes you wonder what they are thinking. Their excuse was to keep the truckers were they belonged........yeah right!!

Safe travels.
Lorraine

[prariepoodle]

palebluedot, we were in over in your neck of the woods just looking around and saw one with the metal bars.

[BillyRay]

guess they didn't consider the rv ers that would just stop to shop!

[Montana_31]

How do the 18 wheelers deliver their shipments?

[Montana_2304]

Doesn't make any sense, I guess it'll be okay for travel trailers cause they certainly aren't near 12' high!
Charlie

[gungho]

in ours the wally world trucks use the parking lot to sleep in on there long hauls, i dont know where they would go.

[sreigle]

After reading this I went to the Walmart website and emailed my thoughts on this. Particularly, how the bars keep us from shopping in their stores when we're traveling. I doubt I'll hear back, but figured I'd just lodge my concern anyhow. Ragdoll, thanks for the truck entrance tip. I hadn't thought about going that way. But, then, we shouldn't have to. You'd sure think if they just don't want RV'ers parking there, whether store preference or local ordinance, they could just post signs to that effect and have their security people and/or local police take care of those who ignore the signs. But my opinion probably doesn't count for much in their overall scheme of things.

[Chuck and Carol]

I received an e-mail from Walmart and they said they value RV travelers and consider them among their best customers. Permission to park is left up to the managers and local laws. They also said there was an atlas you could buy (of course) that lists the Walmarts and the specfic store information.
Next trip to Walmart going to look at that atlas to see what it says.

Carol

[palebluedot]

Ragdoll - Yes this one was here in Laurel, MS.
Prariepoodle - You should have called when up this way, you missed a free cup of joe.

[sreigle]

Carol, that must be a boilerplate email. We got the same thing. We do have the atlas, buy a new one each year. In the front and the back is a listing of walmart locations by city/state along with a grid showing if they have a pharmacy, tire and lube express, etc. Also has a street address and lists the nearest freeway exit. Nice thing is that it's a rand mcnally atlas, fullsize, and costs something like five bucks or thereabouts. Cheaper than buying the "normal" rand mcnally atlas with the same maps, anyhow.

[Chuck and Carol]

As a former Walmart employee, I e-mailed them again. Maybe this time someone will answer the questions I asked. Not just some form letter.
Lets hope so. They could lose a considerable amount of business.

Carol