http://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2016/7/18/big-box-week

I’ve seen way too many cities fall for the big box store. In fact, I worked on a couple of them back in my engineering days. The big box retailer would come to town and promise to pay all the up-front costs for running the sewer and water and putting in the frontage roads. Sometimes they ask for tax subsidies to pay them back – “but for” the subsidy, the development wouldn’t happen, or so they say – but often they make this investment as part of doing business.