Clearing up some errors and misrepresentations
At Monday night’s City Council meeting, I asked several questions and made several comments about the action that Council was about to take regarding the Crestpointe proposal (more about those points later).
Mayor David Bradshaw challenged opponents of Crestpointe, who believe with me that Oak Ridge can and should do better, to find and present viable alternatives. As long as 3 years ago I was posting comments about the need to redevelop the City Center and I made similar comments not long ago (see Instead of Crestpointe, let’s redevelop the City Center), so it’s no secret that I favor that direction. Furthermore, I have commented here and in other venues about the potential merits of a retail development on Bob Monday’s land. However, Council members and staff sneer when Bob Monday’s property or the City Center are mentioned, and the Mayor cut me off on Monday night when I attempted to tell them that the reasons they give for dismissing Bob Monday’s proposal are not valid.
Thus, it seems that I need to tell the story here. (Please be assured I that I have no financial interest in any Oak Ridge real estate other than the place where I live. I am not trying to promote anyone’s property; I am just trying to give Oak Ridgers the facts we need to make an informed decision.)
Here’s what Monday wrote to the community on March 8 (a thumbnail version of one of his site maps is at the right; click on it to open a larger version in a new window, showing two big-box stores adjacent to the DOE boundary, a parking lot to the north of them, and details of the proposed access road to South Illinois Ave.):
Dear Mayor Bradshaw, the Oak Ridge City Council, the Anderson County Commission, and Concerned Citizens of Oak Ridge,
As both a commercial developer and as an Oak Ridge taxpayer, I would like to make all aware of an alternative site that can accommodate a big box center in the City of Oak Ridge. The site is adjacent to the existing City Services Center along the commercial corridor of S. Illinois Avenue. It is an ideal location that deserves your attention.
I have developed and presently own various shopping centers throughout East Tennessee. Through the years, my company has been involved in 11 successful anchored developments in our area. We are a 30 year member of the International Council of Shopping Centers with local understanding that I feel is important to the present situation.
Monday Properties has a long-standing history with the city of Oak Ridge that stretches over a 30 year period. Beginning in 1976, we sold land, clearing the way for Dean Stallings Ford, Oak Ridge Lincoln Mercury, Oak Ridge Storage, the nearby dentist s office and the car wash along S. Illinois Ave. Our subsequent developments, which we presently own, serve the Oak Ridge community well. In 1979 we located the Quincey s restaurant (now Super China Buffet). Over the next five years we struck agreements to bring McDonalds and Sagebrush Steakhouse to Illinois Avenue. From 1991 to 1993, we partnered with a reputable developer to purchase, re-zone, and develop the Kmart and Kroger Shopping Center. Much of the raw land was below grade and required site work, which we readily provided. Finally in 1998, we sold a portion of our land clearing the way for the Oak Ridge City Services Center. These developments have stood the test of time, by their own merits, and without government subsidy. They have provided untold amounts of sales tax, property tax revenue, and jobs to the City of Oak Ridge and to Anderson County.
The 43 acre parcel, which we are now proposing, sits adjacent to the City Services Center at the end of Woodbury Lane. The site is already zoned commercial. To provide primary access from South Illinois Avenue, Target would need the city to provide a red light and roadway bridging East Fork Poplar Creek. Fortunately, this work would also have the positive effect of improving access to the existing City Services Center. Super Target would face South Illinois Avenue oriented toward the downtown area. For further explanation, please refer to the attached conceptual site plans and aerial photographs.
When comparing our 43 acre site to the much larger proposed power center site, we draw the following conclusions: Developing a smaller site that is closer to the city center makes good sense and is in better alignment with the Oak Ridge City Council s published strategic plan. While a brand new power center in Oak Ridge may seem very nice, it would vacate much of the downtown area retail. This would leave an eyesore and future economic challenges. When Super Target comes to town it should come with less surrounding shop space. A Super Target on the 43 acre parcel would be better integrated with the existing retail district. It would not require such a large public expenditure, saving taxpayers a great deal of money.
Based on our experience, we strongly believe that Target will pursue the Oak Ridge market beyond April and that a rushed decision is not in the city s long-term best interest. Target has already expressed a desire to locate in Oak Ridge and will pursue any and all opportunities available. Regardless of a particular site or subsidy, it is highly likely that Target will be in Oak Ridge within the next 5 years.
We hope that the community will take more time to fully evaluate its options, since we are concerned that the City of Oak Ridge and Anderson County are giving away tax money unnecessarily. If possible, we would like for the 43 acre site to be put on the agenda and into consideration. Whatever decision is made, I sincerely hope that it will be in the long-term best interest of the Oak Ridge Community.
I am certainly open to a lively discussion and would like to hear any feedback from community leaders and the people of Oak Ridge. My office line is 865-219-9000.
Best Regards,
Bob Monday President, Monday Properties
City staff asserts that Monday’s land is unsuitable for a Target store because it is in a wetland, lacks access to Illinois Avenue, lacks the desired visibility to drivers on Illinois Avenue, and is too small for the “power center” development that GBT Realty has proposed. What’s the reality?
Wetlands are an issue I know about; I am known to have annoyed several development proponents by raising concerns about the effects of their projects on wetlands and streams. Perhaps the largest wetlands tract in Oak Ridge lies adjacent to East Fork Poplar Creek in the area of Bob Monday’s land, so almost as soon as I received his map, I showed it to a person who is very familiar with the location of the wetlands in that area. I was surprised by what I learned — the property where Monday would place stores and parking is on high ground, outside the wetland. Other maps confirm this. Wetland boundaries would need to be delineated as part of a building project, but the parcel has a good-sized area of buildable land that is not wetland.
Access is a bit more complicated. Right now, the only access is from Woodbury Lane, the new-ish road that cuts off Wilberforce to give access to the city’s Services Center. Bob Monday told me that some time ago he and city staff explored the possibility of an access road across the site of the federal NOAA Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division facility. That route would have affected a large amount of wetland and it was unacceptable to NOAA, so it was rejected. Since then, however, Monday has identified the possibility of a new road between two existing businesses, connecting to Illinois Ave. across from Quincy Road. Several problems would need to be overcome to make that work (acquiring land from its owners, bridging East Fork Poplar Creek, dealing with a natural stream that flows in a ditch on the road alignment, and minimizing traffic impacts on Quincy Road in the Woodland neighborhood), but all of these appear to be solvable. Furthermore, they could be solved at far less cost than the massive earthwork that would happen at Pine Ridge in order to develop Crestpointe.
Visibility is a non-issue. Bob Monday pointed out to me that store buildings on his property would sit at a higher elevation than Dean Stallings Ford and other existing businesses on Illinois Avenue, so stores would be readily visible to drivers over the roofs of those businesses. I confirmed this on maps — drivers would have no problem seeing the stores.
Finally, parcel size is a nonissue. Yes, the parcel is “only” 43 acres, and some of that is not buildable (due to wetlands, for example). However, Monday’s sketch plans show that it is plenty large enough for one or two big box stores plus parking, and possibly a few smaller shops. The clamor in the community is for Target, with the new shopping opportunities, sales tax revenue, and positive vibes that a Target is supposed to bring to nearby stores. This site is plenty big enough for a Target, and the nearby stores receiving positive vibes would be existing and new stores in our existing commercial areas, not newly built stores in a 60-acre isolated shopping center. GBT Realty wants to develop 60 acres, but there’s no solid evidence that Oak Ridge can successfully absorb that much additional shopping (and plenty of reason to believe it can’t absorb it…). If a new shopping center is overbuilt, either the new center will fail to meet its objectives or the competition will have devastating effects on existing stores. Oak Ridge has already been through this once, when the mall was overbuilt (and correspondingly overpriced for its tenants). I hope we are smart enough not to try that failed experiment all over again.
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