Not neccessarily a big deal, but it took years and years for Walmart to get into the Ithaca area. From the Ithaca Journal:
Expanded Walmart plans grand opening WednesdayStaff report • October 26, 2010, 12:00 am
Ithaca's Super Walmart will celebrate its grand opening Wednesday.
The remodeled store, at 135 Fairgrounds Memorial Parkway, has added groceries, a pharmacy, and between 135 and 165 new jobs, according to a news release from Walmart.
Though grocery shelves have been stocked for the past few weeks, the store will officially unveil the new expansion to customers at 8 a.m. Wednesday, after a brief ribbon-cutting ceremony at 7:30 a.m.
The entire 199,000-square-foot store was remodeled to include energy-efficient technology, such as skylights that reduce energy required to light the store by up to 75 percent, LED lighting that operates 70 percent more efficiently than traditional fluorescent lighting, recycled concrete materials and a floor finish that reduces the need for chemical cleaners, according to Walmart.
The re-design of the logo and color scheme at the store was part of a pilot re-branding of Walmart stores nationwide, company consultants told Ithaca's Planning and Development Board when the board reviewed the plans in fall 2008.
With the renovation, the store will now be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Here's the link:
http://www.theithacajournal.com/arti...ning+Wednesday