Southern Pines could see the beginnings of a new commercial center off 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.

The council was very receptive to site designs for Southern Pines Village. But initially, council members asked that the design for the Kohl's building include more elements from the town's appearance standards.

"Brick is a big deal," council member Chris Smithson said after the presentation.

Scott Berkes, an architect representing Kohl's, said the design reflects a building that will be LED certifiable once it is completed. To be LED certifiable, buildings must include more earth-friendly materials that are less energy intensive for construction.

Berkes said the plan did not include as much brick as the council would prefer because brick is more energy-intensive than concrete that is cast on site.

Smithson countered that Sanford is a major brick supplier that would provide materials locally.

During the public hearing, Blanche Woodruff, chairwoman of the Southern Pines Appearance Commission, told the council that the commission did not approve the design for Kohl's because it was "too boxy" and did not have enough dimension or "verticality," which is considered to better suit the character of Southern Pines.

Council member Mike Fields said that though verticality and brick are both important characteristics, the town should not seek homogenous development. He said the buildings in downtown Southern Pines give an "eclectic" feel because its buildings do not look exactly the same. He added that not all buildings in downtown are brick.

Council member Fred Walden said that though the buildings do not have to look exactly the same in one shopping center, Kohl's should be the center's most attractive building as an anchor store.

Several council members agreed, saying that the design of Kohl's will set the tone for the entire development's appearance.

The council also asked that site plans for the Buffalo Wild Wings be changed to better suit the town's appearance standards.

'Common Ground'

The Southern Pines Village development team told the council that they believed they could get the company to work with the town to build a restaurant that is a good compromise.

Local attorney Tom Van Camp asked the council to be proactive in what he considers to be a major development opportunity for the town given the current economic climate.

Van Camp's family owns property that connects to both projects.

"Everybody needs to roll up their sleeves," he said. "The council needs to be proactive in this economic climate. Everyone needs to get together to find a common ground."

The council closed the public hearing and gave Berkes time to alter the design to reference architectural elements of the project's separate retail spaces while the rest of the meeting went on.

The council later opened a second public hearing for the project in which Berkes presented a slightly modified design that added more brick, referenced architectural elements from the surrounding retail shops and placed more vertical elements to the front of the building.

After reviewing the new additions to the design, council members said the modifications were a good compromise and approved the designs for both Kohl's and the retail spaces.

The council's preliminary approval gives a green light for construction on Kohl's to begin by March 1 and finish in time for an opening in October.

Traffic Concerns

Ben Henrich, of Henrich Properties in Charleston, S.C., introduced plans for The Shoppes at Southern Pines to the council.

When the council first reviewed plans for the project in August, council members expressed serious concerns about the traffic impacts to the area with the project.

Members specifically had a problem with the fact that the project does not extend Henley Street from U.S. 15-501 across the property to connect to Morganton Road.

The Southern Pines Planning Board had similar concerns when it evaluated the project in November, but the board recommended the approval of the plan without the extension.

Both Henrich and Susan Clift-Brown, a local commercial real estate broker who has helped coordinate the project, told the council that the extension to Morganton Road will have to go through the Van Camp family's property whenever the family chooses to develop the area.

The plans currently have Henley Street extending through the development at the intersection of Partner Drive and U.S. 15-501 and stubbing off in a location that will allow the road to be extended in the future.

Henrich said that his team has worked closely with N.C. Department of Transportation to determine the potential traffic impacts the project could have on the area.

The project includes plans to extend and develop Short and Southern roads and to install turning lanes into and out of the shopping center on Brucewood Road.

The plans also include a more extensive connectivity, with sidewalks and bike lanes extending from the adjacent soccer fields on Fire Lane. Sidewalks will also extend to Murray Hill Road through the shopping center's Short Road connection.

Town Manger Reagan Parsons also said that any lingering traffic concerns would be addressed during the town's technical review of the project.

'Pretty Significant'

During the public hearing, Van Camp told the council that he and his family believe Heinrich and his team are committed to working with surrounding property owners and making the goals of the Morganton Road Overlay District a reality.

"They're the first group that has decided to look at the whole [overlay district] first, the requirements first, before they started to design," he said. "We've talked about a marriage between these properties with a sense that there's a 750,000-square-foot limit on the south side of Morganton for retail, which includes our acreage. So, we're in agreement with the 360,000 square feet."

Van Camp said the process of developing the area requires both cooperation and compromise from all the property owners in the district.

"We'd like to have more [square footage], but we also have to be realistic," he said.

Van Camp added that he hopes the success of the Southern Pines Village project will spearhead more development in the district.

When the council prepared to vote, Walden said he felt better about voting for the project with the inclusion of a more extensive connectivity plan. He added that the vote was the fourth time he has voted on site plans for the property.

"I hope this will be the last time I vote on this piece of property," he said.

Council member David McNeill said the vote on both projects signified a major step in the development of Southern Pines.

"Tonight, we've got three firms or developers with adjoining tracts of property in a very important part of Southern Pines," he said, "and to hear them tonight with their cooperation and willingness to work together, to tie it together, I think it's a pretty significant night for the town of Southern Pines."

Preliminary approval from the town council is a step toward development in the Morganton Road Overlay District, but both projects will require more votes of approval in the coming year to make them a reality.

Contact Hannah Sharpe at hannah@thepilot.com.