Here is the article about the new Publix coming to
SoWal. It's going to be located close to 393 on Hwy 98.
Another Publix on tap
Proposed new store would be South Walton County’s third
By ANDY MEINEN
andym@nwfdailynews.com
SANTA ROSA BEACH — South Walton County is in line to get a third Publix.
The supermarket chain’s designs for a 39,000-squarefoot store, along with 20,000 square feet of additional retail space, went before the county’s Design Review Board on Dec. 6.
If a few changes are made, construction could start early next year, said Tim Brown, senior planner and Scenic 98 Corridor specialist for Walton County.
Plans call for the store to be located on the north side of U.S. Highway 98 about 2,000 feet east of Veterans Road.
Publix will have to resubmit its plans because the building was too wide for the lot, Brown said. A building’s width can be only 70 percent as wide as the property along the Scenic 98 Corridor that runs through Walton County, he said.
“They will make the building deeper, so the square footage won’t change,” Brown said.
Publix spokesman Dwaine Stevens said he could not confirm that a new store will be built. He called the plans that have been submitted to the county “rumors.”
The Technical Review Board will look at the plans next, but Brown said that probably will not happen until after the holidays. If that board signs off, then the Planning Commission will review the development and give a recommendation to the County Commission, Brown said.
At 39,000 square feet, the proposed new Publix would be larger than the one on County Road 393 at WaterColor but smaller than the one on U.S. 98 at Grand Boulevard in Sandestin, Brown said.
Brown did not know what businesses might occupy the additional retail spaces included in the project. There are also two “outparcels” in the southeast and southwest corners of the development that could house more businesses, Brown said.
Publix will provide about $1 million for traffic safety improvements, which could include a new stoplight and turn lanes, but Brown is not certain yet what changes would need to be made.
Daily News Staff Writer Andy Meinen can be reached at 654-6905.
Publix, they don't demand anything, in fact they come in and give a million dollars worth of improvements so that the traffic impact is offset. Way to go Publix!
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