He said the big box retailer that will be housed on the property is slated to have 70,000 stock keeping units, or SKUs, which are the scannable bar codes found on product labels. Walker stressed urgency in order to keep the project on track, due to the domino effect further delays could have on the development. I didn’t know that when I first showed up, but we’re about there.” “It’s a very complex site to design and develop. “I’ve been working on this for eighteen months to get it to this point,” Walker said. Istenes said that the developer was hoping to have the rezoning application, the preliminary plat and the annexation application all reviewed and approved at the same time, which has not happened.Īlthough the commission doesn’t have the ability to final plat the property while some of it remains outside of city limits, the preliminary plat streamlines the process once annexation is approved by the City Council. In addition to the rezoning application, the commission also approved the preliminary plat for the development, which was also met with unanimous approval from the commission. (Photo from Jack McGee) Walker urges teamwork to avoid putting development in ‘jeopardy’ Springfield city staff emphasized the need for the property located southeast of the intersection of Sunshine Street and West Bypass to have a large buffer between the residential neighborhood to the south and the proposed retail development. “It’s very difficult to try to comprehend the complexity of building a big box retail store,” Walker said. Therefore, the developer has also submitted applications for the city to annex those outstanding parcels of land, which Springfield Planning and Development Director Susan Istenes said is in the process of happening. However, the City Council remanded it back to the Commission, who once again approved the rezoning case on May 11 with altered language in the COD.Ībout 9.4 of the 22.4 acres in question remains in unincorporated Greene County. The Sunshine Towne Center was originally presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission on March 9, where it was met with support from commissioners, who recommended approval to the City Council with a 7-0 vote. Some neighbors have voiced concerns over the development, which the city staff report reads, “emphasis should be placed on providing sufficient screening and landscape buffering between the future commercial development and the existing single-family neighborhood.” About 9.4 acres of the 22.4 acres will need to be annexed into the City of Springfield before the entirety of the property can be rezoned to a Highway commercial district. Sunshine St.ĭaily Citizen reporter Steve Pokin explored the question of whether or not that retailer could be Springfield’s second Target store, but was unable to find any answers due to non-disclosure agreements for involved parties in the project. There is already a Walmart across the road at 3520 W. The developer’s intent is to construct a large retail center, dubbed the Sunshine Towne Center, which they indicated would include a big box store, although a specific company has not yet been named. from a patchwork of zoning to a highway commercial district, which is the city’s most intense commercial district, and establishing a conditional overlay district (COD).īased on the land’s location near Sunshine Street and West Bypass, city staff determined that highway commercial was an appropriate zoning for the property. “I’m not trying to cry ‘poor,’ but it’s very, very important that this gets approved in a timely manner.” Background of the projectĪ trio of applicants seeks to rezone approximately 22.4 acres of land generally located at 3444 W. “Everybody’s going to need to pull together and we can get this thing done on time,” Walker told the commissioners. A new west Springfield big box retailer is one step closer to becoming a reality after the Springfield Planning and Zoning Commission approved the preliminary plat for the development at a May 11 meeting.Įven so, Thomas Walker, the developer behind the project, urged continued teamwork in order to push the complex development forward promptly to avoid “chaos.”
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3/2/2024 01:18:06 am
UP Development implements development projects in both new construction and expansions/renovations. We manage all aspects of retail and office development projects, including feasibility, design and construction.
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