[babyface00]

Today that same area is vibrant with many new businesses

I've noticed the same thing. I think there are two reasons for this.

1) Its prudent to locate your business, especially retail, near your customers. If "everyone" is going to WalMart or Home Depot, then they have to pass by your store on the way there or home.

2) WalMart and Home Depot not only lower costs to consumers, they lower the costs for other businesses, allowing them to allocate costs towards profit, employee benefits, capital improvements, etc.

I'm not saying that there aren't downsides to WalMart, but there are also upsides that are often ignored.

[IamConservative]

"I'm not saying that there aren't downsides to WalMart"

My home town now has two empty Wal-Marts and a brand new SuperCenter. We had one of the very early "brown" WM's. WM vacated it for the newer bigger "blue" store before they started buiding the SuperCenters. Like about everyone else, one cannot afford not to shop at the SuperCenter for the bare necessities, but the empty boxes are becoming an eye sore. Where there is a SuperCenter, no other general merchandise retailer needs a building that large and they tend to sit empty until someone buys it, tears it down and builds something new. What is interesting in our case, is the three buildings are side by side by side. We also have a SuperTarget and a Kroger's doing quite well within walking distance of the SuperCenter.