A plan to put a Walmart and a Sam’s Club in a new Minneola shopping district is sparking backlash from neighbors who say they were promised a walkable town center — not big-box stores — near their homes.
Minneola Marketplace is one of two proposed commercial town centers within Lake County’s Hills of Minneola master-planned community. The planned stores and their surroundings have been redesigned significantly since their inclusion in the project drew controversy last year, but area residents are still worried about traffic and safety.
“We know Walmart has a purpose and a place, we just don’t feel it’s close to where we live,” said Minneola resident Paul Steen, who lives only a few hundred feet away from the proposed Minneola Marketplace development site and just moved there in the last year or so. “We’ve made a substantial investment in our home, and we feel that the congestion that is going to happen from this development, and also the potential crime because Walmart is a little bit of a crime magnet, turns us off. We would like them to go back to the drawing board.”
With over 340,000 square feet of retail space combined, the two stores — northeast of the intersection of North Hancock Road and Citrus Grove Road, southwest of Minneola’s turnpike interchange — will have parking spaces for over 1,200 vehicles.
The 74-acre Minneola Marketplace site will be developed by SunTerra Communities, based out of Oviedo. A future addition to the growing Hills of Minneola area straddling Florida’s Turnpike, the mixed-use development is set to include several out-parcel lots, a gas station, multifamily apartments, and the two big box stores.
The master concept plan for the proposed Minneola Marketplace development shows Walmart and Sam’s Club big box retail stores, an apartment complex, green space for community events and a few spots for potential restaurants within one of two commercial town centers mapped out for the larger Hills of Minneola master-planned community. (Concept plan by Massa Multimedia Architecture)
Since the initial proposal, the buildings have been repositioned and the project now includes more open green space and seating areas, water features, palm trees, and a community gathering location designed to host events like live music and food truck pop-ups.
Abby Belobraydic, regional vice president with Walmart, said the Bentonville, Arkansas, retail giant chose Minneola Marketplace as its next foray into Lake County due to a high volume of customers and foot traffic at the two closest stores to the area, making another location a viable option. They reimagined the plan in response to the first round of comments.
“The design is different and elevated, you have a whole lot of things in the store that are elevated brands. It’s going to bring things that most of the stores don’t have that are brand new and cutting edge,” Belobraydic said.
Dozens of residents showed up to Minneola City Hall on Thursday afternoon to meet with developers, city officials and Walmart representatives.
Representative with Walmart in Florida held an open house event at Minneola City Hall to meet with area residents who had questions and concerns about a proposed Walmart and Sam’s Club planned for the Minneola Marketplace development as part of the Hills of Minneola. (James Wilkins/Orlando Sentinel)
One of them was Steen, who said he is not against development, but would prefer to see a “more high-profile” retailer like Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s instead of a Walmart.
Steen and others said they recently moved to the area with the understanding that there would be no big box stores built near their neighborhoods. Now, residents say, developments like Minneola Marketplace threaten the lifestyle they sought.
Aisha Rivera, another Minneola resident who moved to the area before much of the surrounding development was fully planned, said she had believed that the Hills of Minneola would be more walkable and community-oriented than current plans for the proposed Minneola Marketplace development.
“It’s going to be like any other community, when we were told that it was going to be something different,” she said.
The proposed Minneola Marketplace mixed-use town center is expected to include ample green space for community gatherings and events. (Rendering by Massa Multimedia Architecture)
Representatives from Walmart were made available to listen to residents and take in feedback.
Walmart’s Director of Government and Public Affairs in Florida, Bethany McAlister, spoke to numerous residents about traffic, crime and other topics.
“They have a lot of great concerns, some of them we’ve already touched on, and we’ve changed our plans, and we are continually willing to tweak them,” she said. “We want to help and make sure they understand that we agree with safety in our stores, which is why we brought our safety team and leads to make sure they can explain what we do.”
Bethany McAlister, Walmart Director of Government and Public Affairs in Florida, speaks to two Minneola residents about the proposed Walmart and Sam’s Club planned for the mixed-use Minneola Marketplace development. (James Wilkins/Orlando Sentinel)
McAlister said their research shows that crime typically goes down when a Walmart comes in and that home values often increase. Along with making the best investment in their properties, McAlister said Walmart is dedicated to making sure residents also have the most affordable goods in their house.
“The number one stressor for residents in Florida is affordability of groceries and common goods,” she said. “In a time when we’re seeing so many things go up with inflation, everything we do as a company and as a culture is focused on how we remain and save every dollar to keep those prices down.”
Decisions like making the proposed Sam’s Club gas station available to all and not just members — a rarity compared to most Sam’s Club gas stations — or adding more playgrounds, at the request of several residents at the open house, are the types of moves McAlister said meeting with the community is all about.
“Not every question will be answered, and you can’t make everybody happy, but I think this is the start of a very long conversation that we’re committed to having,” she said.
While plans have been submitted for Minneola Marketplace, the project has currently received no approval from the city’s planning & zoning board or the county yet.
SunTerra Principal Richard Jerman said the project will need a Planned Development, or PD, amendment to move forward on the big box stores with city approval.
Jerman said he estimates the development will go before the Minneola Planning & Zoning Commission during their meeting in early March and, after waiting two weeks, will likely see a first reading of ordinances from the city council in late March.
Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at jwilkins@orlandosentinel.com or 407-754-4980. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.
