It will be a while before Walden residents and their neighbors in surrounding communities learn whether the town will approve a rezoning request that would clear the way for a 49,000-square-foot grocery complex on the site of the old Lines Orchids greenhouses.
The topic is not on the agenda for the town council’s upcoming May 14 meeting, Vice Mayor Lee Davis said Sunday.
“The (Regional Planning Agency) will make a recommendation at their May 13 meeting,” Walden’s vice mayor said. “After that the developer, John Anderson, may submit an application asking the town to consider rezoning. That has not been done.
“Once the application has been received, it will be set on our agenda,” he said.
In the meantime, Vice Mayor Davis said, “We are actively seeking input from town residents. After town residents have been given the opportunity to comment, we will set the matter on our agenda.”
Hundreds of mountain residents, both pro and con, already have gone public with their opinions on the proposal to build a 49,000-square-foot grocery, fuel center and 10,000-square-foot office/retail building in the heart of Walden.
Dueling online petition drives have been launched on Change.org. outlining their respective positions and courting potential signers.
As of Sunday, 303 people had signed the petition supporting the grocery complex, compared to 727 who signed opposing it.
Proponent Heidi Wheelock, who titled her petition “Support the Development at Lines Orchids, Walden,” said that her position is based on financial concerns.
“The planned grocery store will replace the greenhouses and buildings formerly owned by Lines Orchids at 1823 Taft Highway,” she argued in the body of the petition. “Those buildings are now empty and falling into disrepair . . . (W)e have an exciting opportunity to replace the dilapidated buildings while generating beneficial tax revenue for our community.”
Now that the Hall tax has been repealed and is being phased out, Walden will lose that hundreds of thousands of dollars that tax once brought in, she noted.
“Town leaders will likely raise property taxes to recoup some of this funding,” she wrote. “They won’t have to if there’s another source of revenue on the mountain, such as this grocery store.”
A petition opposing the development, however, contended Walden officials would violate their own ordinances and mission statement if they approved the rezoning request.
“The Town of Walden has just begun a land use planning process,” according to the petition, which was created by Sally and Ward Crimmins, Margha Davis, Sallie Ford and Tony Wheeler.
“As residents of our mountain community, we firmly believe that any zoning changes should not be considered until the Walden Land Use Planning process is completed. We urge you to deny the request.”
Further, according to the petition, “The proposed development will have a harmful effect on surrounding property . . . as well as creating stormwater runoff issues, including possible effects on nearby coal mines.
“It will reduce the aesthetic and monetary value of nearby homes and set a dangerous precedent for allowing future commercial developments to encroach into other residential neighborhoods and for granting future variances. In addition, the development will cause a significant increase in the number of large trucks on U.S. 127, traffic congestion, and noise and light pollution.”
In Walden, Vice Mayor Davis said town officials want to hear from their constituents before making any decisions. Toward that end, he urged Walden residents to “email their thoughts to town hall.:waldentownhall@comcast.net. or call the town (423) 886-4362.”
“I am still gathering information,” he concluded, “and until I hear the planning board’s recommendation and hear from town residents, it would be premature for me to offer my thoughts on any rezoning request.”