Wal-Mart to request closing road by store

The discount chain wants Pinellas Park to block shoppers at the planned store from the neighborhood off U.S. 19.

By ANNE LINDBERG

© St. Petersburg Times, published August 13, 2000

PINELLAS PARK -- With the blessing of nearby business owners and residents, Wal-Mart will ask the City Council to close part of a road to keep shoppers from driving through a neighborhood west of its new supercenter.

If council members agree, the discount giant would build a dirt berm across 80th Avenue N in the block between U.S. 19 and 42nd Street. It's unclear when the council will consider the issue.

The berm would be far enough from U.S. 19 to continue access to a church and a business but would prevent Wal-Mart shoppers from using residential streets to avoid the busy highway.

"I'm sold on that," said Tom Farner, owner of Bay Area Auction Services.

Farner's auction house at 8010 U.S. 19 N is on the northwest corner of that intersection. He said an earlier plan to build a concrete triangle to direct Wal-Mart and northbound U.S. 19 traffic away from that section of 80th Avenue would keep away customers.

Farner said he then would be unable to expand his now-monthly operation to an antique center that is open every day.

"We just happen to have a business that is going to choke to death," he said. "Ingress and egress are just choked to a stop for us."

Wal-Mart requested the meeting Wednesday after receiving letters and petitions from neighbors worried that many shoppers exiting the supercenter at 80th Avenue would rather cross U.S. 19 and navigate the neighborhood than cope with the highway traffic.

David Campbell of Kimley-Horn, the engineer for the Wal-Mart project, first proposed the concrete triangle to solve the neighborhood's concern. But when confronted by Farner's objections, he and other Wal-Mart representatives came up with the idea of completely blocking the street.

The latest solution pleased Farner and the neighbors and Campbell promised he would push his plan with the state Department of Transportation and the City Council.

Neighborhood traffic calming appears to be one of the last issues the discount chain must settle before construction begins on the new supercenter at 8001 U.S. 19 N.

The 24-hour supercenter, complete with grocery store and auto lube area, will take the place of the Movies at Pinellas Park and the Drive-In Ministries next door.

The movie theaters closed recently and the Drive-In Ministries is expected to close at the end of September, Campbell said. Soon after, wrecking crews will demolish the old buildings.

Groundbreaking for the new Wal-Mart is scheduled to begin in November. Completion would come next August.

"We're well on the track to getting this thing going," Campbell said.

Campbell could not give any insight into what would happen to the existing Wal-Mart just a half-mile north at 8900 U.S. 19 N. That's up to the company, he said.

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