More than a decade after the original plans fell through, the Glennwood Commons shopping center will soon fill out with the addition of several new businesses. Delaware City Council approved a Combined Preliminary and Final Development Plan for the approximately 14.20 acres of land that sits between Meijer and Kohl’s on Sunbury Road during its meeting Monday.
The Delaware Planning Commission unanimously recommended the development to council during its Feb. 5 meeting, and council was also unanimous with a 6-0 vote Monday; Councilman Chris Jones abstained due to a conflict of interest.
Once planned to be the site of a Home Depot, now approved is the construction of a 96,100-square-foot building, which would then be divided into several different businesses. The Home Depot plans fell through thanks to, among other reasons, the Great Recession.
“Fortunately for us, our community was resilient enough, as were the center owners, to put in a couple of anchor tenants and get the center started,” Planning and Community Development Director Dave Efland said. “It continued and survived the Great Recession and, I think, is doing well (today).”
Four future tenants have already been identified for the approved plan. Hobby Lobby will have the largest of the buildings with a 55,000-square-foot space. A 22,000-square-foot space has been designated for a T.J. Maxx location. Ulta Beauty will have a 10,500-square-foot space, and Five Below will have the smallest of the spaces with an 8,500-square-foot building.
The development area also allows for an additional space of 12,540 square feet for a future tenant. That space is not included in this plan, however, and would require the developer to submit its own Preliminary and Final Development Plan once a tenant comes forward.
Efland joked of the businesses that will be joining the center: “I know, from social media, they are very exciting names to the community.” He went on to say it “would be nice to complete at least the back portion of this center,” adding that the incoming businesses will also help the center to bring in businesses to fill the remaining outlots as well.
Councilwoman Lisa Keller, referencing comments she said she often sees online regarding approved developments, reminded the public that council does not vote on projects based on the business coming in. Efland followed up that statement by saying, “I’ve remarked before that we do not review these with the name above the door in mind. Whether they are names the community might like, in this case, or names the community has expressed in the past that it maybe doesn’t like … we review with respect to the design requirements that are in place for this particular center or this particular site.”
Efland went on to say staff’s comments on this project are intended to ensure that K2 Retail Development and its owner, Kris Krstovski, are held to the same standard as anyone else who has come into the center.
Krstovski said of the tenants set to occupy the building and any concerns about their longevity, “These are the four top retailers in the nation right now that e-commerce just cannot compete with … They’re in here, guaranteed, for 10 years. And if the success is the way that I think everyone envisions it, I think they’re going to be here for quite a long time.”
The plan, Krstovski said, is to begin building sometime in April depending on how quickly the development team can finish the final drawings.
