Walmart: Do You Love Them or Hate Them?

Walmart is one of those companies that many people love to hate.

Just north of the Decatur city limits, Walmart and Selig Enterprises hope to shopping center in the first half of 2013 to make way for a new Walmart Supercenter. The project has sparked angry protests from nearby residents and talk of a lawsuit to stop the project, but some people do support it.

In Sandy Springs, the city council quickly passed a moratorium on all big box stores, apparently after hearing rumors that Walmart wanted to come to town.

Walmart broke ground in the Westside Village in March despite complaints from some area residents that the company didn't do enough to design an attractive building, as it has in other locations. That store is expected to create 200 jobs and become a badly needed source of fresh groceries for the English Avenue and Vine City neighborhoods when it opens in early 2013.

And a Walmart neighborhood market _ the company's version of a neighborhood grocery store _ is reportedly moving into the Tucker Square shopping center. Because of their smaller size and focus on food, these stores haven't sparked the kind of anger that the supercenters often do.

So what do you think of Walmart? Do you see this store as serving an essential need? Is it just hip to hate Walmart? Tell us what you think in the comments area below.