A major shopping center is coming to the old Nipomo Rec Center spot. What’s going in?
The former location of the old rec center in Nipomo could soon be the site of its newest shopping development.
The property, owned by Beverly Hills developer Brad Sobel, will soon house four major businesses, all new to the area. A Wendy’s fast food restaurant will be joined by Tractor Supply store, Grocery Outlet and O’Reilly’s Auto Parts stores.
“The project will generate 65-plus jobs which is really terrific and retailers that are sorely needed in the Nipomo community,” Sobel told the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission at its meeting Jan. 28.
The Planning Commission unanimously approved permits for the four new buildings, plus parking lots on the 5-acre parcel off Frontage Road in Nipomo.
Over the past decade, a multitude of projects have been proposed for the mostly undeveloped land in that area, but never built.
First, the property was home to the Nipomo Recreation Center.
The land was sold out from under the site in the 1990s, with plans to convert it to a development tied to the nearby shopping center off Tefft Street. The recreation building sat vacant for some time before it burned down due to arson in 2008.
At that time, developer Rob Marinai, a representative of Oakland-based developer Elevation 77, said his company planned to build 60,000 square feet of retail and office space, including a 70-room hotel and about 50 condominiums, on that and surrounding lots.
Those plans were chipped away and set aside over the years, as drought impacted the entire region and made larger projects undesirable.
But now San Luis Obispo County commissioners say they are excited about the construction prospect for the area.
“I think this is a great project for Nipomo,” District 2 commissioner Michael Multari said during the meeting.
Fast food restaurant, retail stores coming to Nipomo
The Nipomo development will bring in four major new businesses offering everything from food to car parts.
The largest will be a 18,800-square-foot Tractor Supply store, offering products such as pet food, clothing, boots, farming equipment, fencing, gardening supplies and propane. The site will also include a 15,000-square-foot, fenced-in outdoor display area, according to county planning documents.
Customers will be able to drive their vehicles into the fenced area to pick up large purchases.
Tractor Supply will employ approximately 15 people, and store hours will most likely range between 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays.
There are two other Tractor Supply locations in San Luis Obispo County — one in San Luis Obispo and another in Paso Robles, according to the company’s website.
The second-largest building in the new shopping center will house an 18,000-square-foot Grocery Outlet supermarket.
The discount grocery store chain has more than 350 stores in California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada and Pennsylvania, according to county planning documents. Grocery Outlet already has five locations in San Luis Obispo County.
Grocery Outlet will employ approximately 30 people — half of those part-time, half full-time workers. Store hours will likely be 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, and the store would be open seven days per week.
O’Reilly’s Auto Parts, which sells car parts, tools, supplies, equipment and accessories, will be located in a roughly 7,454-square-foot building.
The auto store chain, which has five other locations around San Luis Obispo County, will employ approximately 10 people and would typically be open 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
Finally, Wendy’s will be approximately 2,756 square feet and feature a drive-through and outdoor seating.
According to county planning documents, the fast food restaurant will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will employ about 10 people.
The Nipomo location will be the first Wendy’s in the South County area. There are currently two others in the North County: one in Atascadero and another in Paso Robles.
What will happen to Frontage Road skate park?
The abandoned recreation center parking lot has long served as a makeshift skate park for local kids.
With the new development, they could temporarily be displaced, though an official skate park is in the works.
In 2019, the San Luis Obispo County Parks and Recreation Department released a final design for the new park, which would be located next to the Nipomo public library.
That skate park would feature quarter pipes, banks, ledges, flat bars, a flow bowl and a skate bowl up to 5 feet deep, according to the county, It would also include a plaza area for skateboarding, a picnic area with barbecues, a drinking fountain and restrooms.
The construction for the project was estimated to cost about $1.5 million, which the county has been in the process of securing through various sources.
County officials in late 2020 said pending funding, construction on the skate park could begin sometime in 2021.
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