When will Atascadero Wal-Mart open? City, company talk

Wal-Mart is expected to update the city of Atascadero in January or February on when it may start the construction of its long-debated shopping center on the north end of town.

The new details came out of a Dec. 10 phone conversation between city officials and representatives from the national retailer, which were recapped for The Tribune on Tuesday by Warren Frace, Atascadero’s community development director.

Meanwhile, two days before the call took place, Atascadero Mayor Tom O’Malley and Councilman Bob Kelley got in a verbal scuffle about whether Kelley could sit in with the mayor on the talk.

“The city initiated the call just because … the City Council has been interested in the status of the project and when construction may begin,” Frace said. “We thought having the mayor involved might open up more lines of communication back to Arkansas.”

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is headquartered in Bentonville, Ark.

The update is the first the council has been involved with since a lawsuit over the city’s 2012 approval of the store ended this summer, although Frace says he regularly checks in with the corporation.

In June 2012, the City Council unanimously approved construction of two shopping centers at Del Rio Road and El Camino Real: a Wal-Mart center and a separate shopping and dining development called The Annex. Madonna Enterprises recently purchased The Annex property and renamed it Del Rio Marketplace.

Shortly after, a citizens group sued the city for approving the plans. That group, led by Atascadero resident Tom Comar, ended the litigation this summer by not contesting an appellate court's ruling that said the city acted legally.

Since that time, residents have consistently asked the city when the store will open. Also, in September, the city announced that interchange improvements related to the new shopping centers could cost at least three times more than thought when the city signed a cost-sharing agreement with the retail giant in 2012. The City Council hasn’t directed staff to pursue any potential renegotiations with Wal-Mart or Madonna Enterprises to make up the difference.

Then, at the end of the council’s Dec. 9 meeting, Councilwoman Roberta Fonzi brought up that the call was taking place by asking if it was possible for city staff to send the council a summary of what was discussed.

“We won’t be voting on it again, and we’ve already approved it,” she said at the meeting. “But I know that all of us are getting calls from constituents, so we’d like to hear any progress report that we can get out.”

Councilman Kelley then asked if he could sit in on the call, just to listen, but Mayor O’Malley said he himself was sitting in this time and perhaps Kelley could sit in on another talk.

“I would leave it to staff’s discretion,” O’Malley said at the meeting. ”I’m going to sit in on this, and I recommend we let that go for this go-around, and anything pertinent, as usual, Warren (Frace) can get to us.”

O’Malley and Kelley then debated over the issue for a short period before Fonzi said that having the mayor be the voice of the council during the phone discussion may be best, even though all the council members would like to hear the discussion.

“I think Wal-Mart is a burning issue with everybody. For everyone on the council and everyone in the community,” Fonzi said. “I just don’t want to make this … unwieldy.”

She then asked if the phone call could be recorded, to which city attorney Brian Pierik said yes, if both parties on the call agreed. He hedged on recommending such an action, though, saying: “I guess another question would be whether or not that recording would be a public record. And, I guess, another question would be whether or not the parties be, uh, reluctant to say certain things knowing that they’re being recorded.”

After, Kelley said he’d be OK with receiving a recap of the meeting, which Frace said the council received on Friday.

During the call, Frace said Wal-Mart representatives told him and O’Malley that Atascadero’s store is currently in the company’s real estate review committee stage and that the process was on hold while the company focuses on its holiday retail season.

“So, in January or February it’s my understanding that (Wal-Mart) expects they will be making some decisions on the project,” Frace said.

Wal-Mart hasn’t applied for building permits for its Atascadero shopping center yet, according to the city. The only deadlines it faces are still two years out, when several parcel maps tied to the project’s boundary lines expire July 10, 2016, Frace said. The company also is entitled to five 1-year extensions on the parcel maps.

This story was originally published December 17, 2014 at 5:10 PM with the headline "When will Atascadero Wal-Mart open? City, company talk."