Walmart fight for store near Civil War battlefield goes to court

Orange, Va. -- Walmart’s next step to open a Supercenter near Wilderness Battlefield in Orange, Va., goes to court Tuesday, as Orange County Circuit Judge Daniel R. Bouton is scheduled to hear arguments on requests for summary judgments from attorneys in the case.



If the trial moves forward, a preservation group and local residents who oppose the store will square off against Walmart and the Orange County officials who approved the Supercenter.



Opponents claim the store will be built on what was a "nerve center" for the Battle of the Wilderness in 1864. County officials have countered by saying that the store would be built in an area already zoned commercially and outside the limits of the protected battlefield.