The Medlock Area Neighborhood Association website posted this letter from Selig Enterprises…

Yesterday, a DeKalb County Superior Court judge ruled that Good Growth DeKalb does not have standing to appeal DeKalb County’s decision to issue Selig a building permit to construct a Walmart at Suburban Plaza.  Good Growth DeKalb had claimed that it had standing to appeal DeKalb County’s issuance of Walmart’s building permit.  The Court disagreed.  As a result, the building permit is valid and the project is now cleared to move forward.

Good Growth DeKalb filed an internal DeKalb County administrative appeal in January, contending that the County issued the building permit for the Walmart Supercenter in error. Their appeal was addressed to the Technical Board of Appeals. However, because the appeal challenged issues such as trees and hydrology that fell under the jurisdiction of the Zoning Board of Appeals, the County assigned the appeal to the Zoning Board of Appeals.  In its lawsuit, Good Growth DeKalb contended that the Zoning Board of Appeals did not have authority to hear the matter.  In an eleven-page ruling, Judge Barrie rejected Good Growth DeKalb’s claims and declared that it did not have standing under the County ordinances to file the appeal.  

Selig is pleased with the outcome and believes the Judge came to the correct conclusion given the law and the facts in the case.  Selig would like to thank Dekalb County Attorneys, Duane Pritchett and John Jones, for doing such an excellent job in defending the County’s issuance of the permit and in responding to Good Growth DeKalb’s claims.

Further, Selig is excited about the continued tenant interest in the project – including LA Fitness (which will include a daycare facility), HomeGoods, Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores, and Ross Dress for Less.  We hope to be under construction by the end of the year.

As always, we thank you for your continued involvement and support in this project and we will continue to update the community as we progress.

Sincerely,
              
Scott Selig

The Medlock Area Neighborhood Association website has photos of the six concept sketches displayed at last night’s Medlock/Suburban Plaza/Walmart meeting last night of both the new Walmart and the rehabbed Suburban Plaza.

Jonathan Cribbs of North Druid Hills Patch live-blogged the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association discussing the proposed Walmart at Suburban Plaza earlier tonight.  And with both Steve Selig and Walmart representatives in attendance, there’s a heck of a lot of info in there if you’re willing to dig.  Among the highlights…

• Selig says that the development is in-line with the DeKalb’s LCI plan for the area
• Lots of bike racks
• “LA Fitness is “extremely interested” in coming as well. So is Home Goods, Dick’s, Michael’s, hhgregg. Old Pizza Hut will be a new restaurant. Bowling alley is staying. Big Lots is going to stay “temporarily.” “The question Big Lots has is can they compete with the big anchor.”
• Code is 5.5 per 1,000 parking ratio. Walmart is asking for 3.5 per 1,000.
• No Walmart Supercenter has ever been shut down – and this will be a Walmart Supercenter
• Plans are for this to be a 24-hour store
• Not many metro Walmarts sell guns, but they do sell ammo
• Trader Joe’s told Selig to “take a hike”

Lots more in the live blog, so check ‘er out!

The Medlock neighborhood association met last night and has provided a very detailed recap regarding everything that is currently known about Selig’s plan to bring Walmart to a redeveloped Suburban Plaza.

Not only have they posted a conceptual site plan (above – click to enlarge), but also plenty of additional details about the proposed development.  To sum up…

• Developer is very interested in community feedback and is aware the residents want a more walkable, bikeable area
• Selig has ordered a traffic study on its own dime, but county state roads surrounding the site will make it a complicated process
• Walmart would take over the space “occupied by the thrift store and the discount mattress store. The Walmart would feature 500 underground parking spots; Walmart would pay for this.”
• The Walmart would be 147,000 square feet with 40,000 square feet dedicated to groceries
• Selig would also reface all other buildings in the plaza
• Trader Joe’s was not interested in the site
• Walmart will not have a garden center – a concern with Intown ACE Hardware fans

The Medlock Neighborhood Association has scheduled an entire meeting to cover the details of this plan on November 2nd at 7pm at North Presbyterian Church at 611 Medlock Road.

But don’t just go on my summation, there’s a lot more info in the Medlock post!

Since my first post back in June, I’ve heard from more than one trusted anonymous source that Walmart was indeed part of the Suburban Plaza redevelopment plan.  Clairmont Heights Civic Association’s website reports that the property’s owner, Scott Selig, presented at a county community council meeting earlier this week and confirmed that Walmart is part of the plan.  According to the CHCA…

The plan has Walmart as an anchor. Other retailers were approached, but Walmart was apparently the only one with funding and interest. Walmart has offered to place underground all of their parking spaces and to add extensive landscaping. The county has expressed interest in making the N Decatur/Scott/Medlock intersection more pedestrian friendly.

All of this is in-line with what Tomorrow’s News Today originally reported back in June and what I’ve continued to hear from reliable sources who wouldn’t go on the record.

Photo courtesy of Google Streetview