by Kevin Kelley, Vermont Business Magazine Target, the retail giant seen as an upper-scale alternative to Wal-Mart, may still be planning to build a 136,500-square-foot store in Williston, but Town Planning Director Ken Belliveau says the chain's chances of constructing such an outlet on the site of the former Williston Driving Range appear ‘slim.’
Vermontbiz.com incorrectly reported last week that Belliveau had said Target would not be coming to Williston. His actual comment in an interview earlier this month was, ‘Target had been wanting to build here, but it looks like it's not going to happen.’
Vermontbiz.com also reported erroneously that the driving range property is owned by JL Davis Realty. It is in fact owned by Al Senecal's Omega Realty.
In a March 26 interview, Belliveau noted that a zoning change would have to be approved by Williston officials in order for Target to build a store on Senecal's site. That 15-acre parcel is currently zoned for mixed-use/residential, Belliveau said.
He added that Target has not been back in touch with his office since a January 3 Planning Commission meeting. At that session, he related, Target representatives had said in response to planners' comments and suggestions that they were not inclined to build a smaller or multi-story store or to add structured parking.
For its part, Target spokesman Eddie Baeb saidMarch 26that while the Minneapolis-based retailer has not filed a formal application to the town of Williston, it is still interested in the driving range site and is ‘very much in preliminary discussions’ on the location.
Baeb said that in any case, Target will continue to explore opportunities in Vermont.
The envisioned building's footprint would cover three acres, Belliveau said, and would be the largest building in the town. Wal-Mart, situated in the Taft Corners shopping center, measures about 120,000 square feet.
Unless Target takes into account the concerns voiced by some planners and town residents, ‘You would have to think of their chances of building here as being slim,’ Belliveau said in the March 26 interview.
The possibility of building a Target in JL Davis' Taft Corners shopping center fell through earlier in part because Target wanted to own the property.
Greg Dirmaier, vice president of JL Davis, confirmed in a mid-March interview that his firm was not willing to sell a parcel to Target.
‘With a few early exceptions, we don't sell,’ Dirmaier said in reference to the businesses that have located at Taft Corners.
Target still would like to tap into the Burlington-area market, Dirmaier added, but he suggested a suitable locale may not be easy to find.
‘They probably need 15 acres, relatively level, zoned right, and with water and sewer in place,’ he said.
If Target does not decide to build in Williston, that may be for the good, Belliveau observed in mid-March. He said the town ‘has been trying to move in the opposite direction’ from the big-box retail outlet that Target has indicated an interest in constructing.
Vermont is the only state without a Target.
Timothy McQuiston contributed to this report.