Walmart Watch: Demolition Brings Randallstown One Step Closer to 2012 Opening

If you're a Randallstown resident, shopping might mean trekking out to Owings Mills or Catonsville.

But come fall 2012, the planned Walmart Super Center at Liberty Plaza will offer a full-service grocery, bakery, deli, pharmacy and outdoor living department.

On Tuesday, County Executive Kevin Kamenetz led a demolition celebration at the plaza, located at Liberty and Benbrook roads in Randallstown, to herald the new store's construction there.

During the ceremony, one of the few remaining walls of the former Valu Food store was torn down before an audience of about 40 people.

"Randallstown deserves what the rest of the world has to offer," Kamenetz said before the dramatic demolition. "This Walmart could attract some other national retailers into town," he said.

John McPhaul, founder and former president of the Liberty Road Business Association, attended the event. He said Ruby Tuesday plans to follow Walmart into the community.

Cheryl Pasteur, principal of Randallstown High School, also attended the event. She was chair of the steering committee for the Urban Design Team that, 10 years ago, developed a vision for the Liberty Road Corridor, which included getting the super center into Liberty Plaza.

The new store is a boon for the community, and to students at the school as well, she said.

"It means a great deal to us," she said. Students in school programs such as the Academy of Finance, the School to Career, and co-op projects will have another place to work.

For example, the 60 Academy of Finance students already work with the U.S. Social Security Administration, but working with Walmart will give them another level—retail—to work with.

The new, 160,000-square-foot store is expected to bring 350 permanent jobs to town, as well as 100 construction jobs.

Developing the Liberty Road corridor has been one of Kamenetz's focuses, and that push continues, Kamenetz said Tuesday.

Since 1999, more than $180 million in new investment has been pumped into the corridor, which includes Randallstown, including modernizing and upgrading nine 1960s-era shopping centers, according to a news release from Kamenetz's office.

Randallstown Plaza and Liberty Plaza are among them, according to a news release from Kamenetz's office.

Also among the investments are the $110 million in expanded services and renovations at Randallstown's Northwest Hospital.

Correction: The original version of this story incorrectly stated the prevalence of grocery stores in Randallstown.