"Boondocking" at Wal-Mart is increasingly popular among the 30 million people who roam around the country in some 9 million RVs. And most Wal-Mart stores, which see campers as lucrative all-night customers, are encouraging it. But some cities worry that parking-lot camping poses safety and environmental risks and a few, such as Flagstaff, Arizona, have banned the practice altogether. Meanwhile, campground owners are upset about losing business and complain that Wal-Mart should have to comply with the same licensing and zoning rules that campgrounds do.
The issue came to a head this summer in Cody, Wyoming, a popular way station for RVs headed to Yellowstone National Park. Cody officials noticed extra litter in the far reaches of the Wal-Mart parking lot where RVs tend to congregate and they suspected that some campers were dumping gray water. The city struck a deal with Wal-Mart to post signs in the parking lot directing campers to dumping stations for RV waste. The store also agreed to put extra trash cans in the camping area.
"We'd rather have them stay in the Wal-Mart parking lot than in another community," says Cody Mayor Ken Stockwell, noting that as many as eight RVs boondock at the store on a typical summer night. "They buy gas at our gas stations, they eat in our restaurants and they certainly buy stuff at our Wal-Mart. If they moved on, it would be lost revenue for our community."
