Wal-Mart Stores Inc. opened its first downtown Los Angeles location on Friday afternoon.

The store, a 34,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market in the Grand Plaza at Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard and Grand Avenue, is about one-fifth the size of a typical Wal-Mart Supercenter.

“The Chinatown community has waited more than 20 years for a full service grocery store to open at Grand Plaza. The Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market will continue Chinatown’s revitalization and offer Chinatown and downtown residents a much-needed grocery store with fresh produce in our community,” George Yu, president of the Chinatown Business Improvement District, said in a statement.

Activists had opposed the opening of the store, citing Wal-Mart’s labor practices. The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance tried to prevent the store from opening by overturn its zoning permits in December, citing what it said was an inappropriate review process. That bid was not successful.