Shopping Center Gets Conditional Approval

The Town Council has given a conditional blessing to a proposed 111-acre complex of industrial, commercial and office space, restaurants and retail stores that could provide a huge boost to the local economy.

The new mixed-use project will be located at the corner of Shotwell Road and U.S. 70 near the western entrance to town.

The complex---composed of an 43.3-acre tract expected to see mix of light industrial and commercial uses, an 11.3-acre tract expected to get a restaurant, bank, office space and retail stores and a 56-acre tract that will become a large shopping center to be called “The Shoppes at Little Creek”---can go forward as soon as the town, the state and the developers work out details on street access and related traffic mitigation measures.

If the details can be worked out quickly, as all parties expect, construction could begin before the end of the year. The project received a strong recommendation from the Town Planning Board prior to ultimate and unanimous approval from the Council.

Though specifc development on the two smaller tracts remain unidentified, the new shopping center is planning to have a large home-improvement store, restaurants and specialty retail shops. Developers say it will bring more than 700 new jobs to town and give residents an alternative to driving to Raleigh to shop.

The project includes significant road improvements, including improvements at the intersection of Shotwell & 70 and an eventual connection to West Main Street.