The Arboretum Office Park in south Charlotte could be getting a new grocery store – rumored to be Publix – as part of a redevelopment project, according to residents who have been meeting with the office park’s owner.
A group of residents and neighborhood representatives have met with developer Childress Klein to discuss rezoning the suburban office park, currently home to Wells Fargo and Bank of America branches. It’s across from the larger Arboretum Shopping Center on Pineville-Matthews Road, which already includes a Harris Teeter grocery store.
Charlotte City Council member Ed Driggs has also been part of the discussions. A Childress Klein representative said they couldn’t reveal more information about the redevelopment, due to confidentiality agreements, but they expect to file a rezoning petition for the site on Friday.
According to Driggs and members of the Hembstead neighborhood association who have met with Childress Klein, the rezoning would change the Arboretum office park from office-only to mixed use, which could include a 49,000 square-foot grocery store. That’s about the size of a typical new Publix.
The new plan would include a bank branch, a building with some retail and a food store, Driggs said. He said there has been “speculation” among residents about a Publix, though he would not confirm any plans about the Florida-based grocer. The plan would also include more sidewalks to make it easier for local residents to walk to the site.
Some residents have voiced concern with parking and noise, Driggs said.
“We continue to seek out new sites across Charlotte so that we can better serve customers, yet this is not a confirmed Publix location,” Publix spokeswoman Kimberley Reynolds said of the Arboretum.
It would not be unusual for Publix to build a new store close to a Harris Teeter location since the two grocers compete for the same customer base. That’s the case in Cotswold, where Publix is building a new store directly across Randolph Road from a Harris Teeter.
A few miles down Providence Road from the Arboretum, Childress Klein and Crosland Southeast teamed up to develop Waverly, a mixed-use project that’s anchored by a new Whole Foods. That store is expected to open this spring.
Ely Portillo: 704-358-5041, @ESPortillo
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