Southern Pines could see the beginnings of a new commercial center off of Morganton Road by this time next year.

After public hearings conducted during its meeting Tuesday, the Southern Pines Town Council unanimously approved preliminary plans for Southern Pines Village and The Shoppes of Southern Pines, two commercial projects proposed for sites located in the Morganton Road Overlay District.

Southern Pines Village is a commercial site proposed for the old Kmart shopping center on Brucewood Road. Phase one of the project will include a Kohl’s department store, a Buffalo Wild Wings sports bar and restaurant and three other retail spaces.

The Shoppes at Southern Pines is a commercial development that will have 360,000 square feet of retail spaces on 44.59 acres east of U.S. 15-501, north of Short Street and south of Southern Road. Plans include three larger box stores and smaller retail buildings.

For more on this story, see Friday's print edition of The Pilot.