Bedroom Community Unwittingly Opens Door for Big-Box Developers It Wanted to Shut Out

CLERMONT, FL-This city of 8,145 permanent residents, 25 miles west of Downtown Orlando, has a two-year-old ordinance banning power center retailers such as Target, Home Depot and Wal-Mart. But city officials are finding out this week their law has few if any teeth.

After approving a controversial zoning application for Minneapolis-based Target Stores Inc. two weeks ago, Atlanta-based Home Depot Inc. is in Clermont asking for the same favorable treatment for its planned 110,000-sf home improvement retail store. Target’s store will be 187,000 sf.

The location of the Home Depot store at State Road 50 near Oakley Seaver Boulevard is crucial to its application. The Home Depot site almost touches a 32-acre site Wal-Mart bought and never developed two years ago for $2.3 million or $71,875 per acre ($1.65 per sf).