Luring Big Business to Lil' ol' Wallula

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By Chelsea Kopta

Summary

Walla Walla leaders just bought land to bring in a Fortune 500 company to the tiny town of Wallula.

Story Published: Aug 31, 2007 at 6:05 PM PST

Luring Big Business to Lil' ol' Wallula
WALLULA -- Depending on who you ask, it's a project that could put Lil' Wallula on the map.

Action News even heard commissioners calling this "Project Goldrush."

Port of Walla Walla leaders are setting their sights on a $300 million payoff to the community.

They just bought land to bring in a Fortune 500 company to the tiny town.

But some neighbors aren't sold on the fortune.

"Were a small town, not a town really. We don't even have a store," Wallula neighbor Lori Hoover said.

In a community of roughly 60 homes, Wallula only has two buildings:an empty school house and a post office.

it gives a whole new meaning to snail mail.

"We kind of feel like we're living in the middle of nowhere," Hoover said. "Walla Walla doesn't want us, people on the other side of the river don't want us. We're just living here, surviving, in the middle of nowhere."

"I like the quietness, I like the low-key," Wallula neighbor Manda Cassidy. "We just don't like living in the big city."

But Wallula could see some big-city business.

Walla Walla commissioners haven't named the company for fear of jeopardizing negotiations.

It's only identified as a "consumer goods manufacturer'' that could go on 1,200 acres of Wallula farmland.

So, could you imagine any one of these latest fortune 500 companies: Wal-mart, Exxon Mobil, or General Motors?

"I think it would be a terrible thing for this community," Cassidy said.

"Seeing the name just sounds scary," Hoover said. "If there were going to put in a general store. But the name 'goldrush?' To me that sounds like a big project."

The closest store to Wallula is Crazy Mary'sm nearly five miles away.

The store owner told Action New she's also worried about a Fortune 500 company.

She doesn't live in Wallula but if a Costco or other large grocery store goes in, it could take away business from her.