Last year, the retailer wasn't able to obtain the zone change it needed, as the city commissioners voted unanimously to deny it. This time, it would build on a 13-acre site that doesn't need one, which means it doesn't need approvals from either the planning commission or the city commissioners.
All Wal-Mart needs is administrative approval from the community development director Dan Drentlaw. Drentlaw is expected to make a decision in April. Either way, his decision will likely be appealed, pushing into the laps of the city commissioners anyway.
One of the determinations Drentlaw will make is whether the old proposal and the new proposal are too much alike. City code says that if an application has been denied, the applicant must wait a year before submitting a "substantially similar" proposal.
A three-week public comment period starts Monday. Information about the project will be available at an open house in City Hall from 5:30 to 7 p.m. April 12. Public comments will be accepted at that time.
In January, the Hood River County Commission rejected Wal-Mart's request to replace its existing 75,000-sf store there with an 186,000-sf superstore, which would have been 17 times larger than any other building in the immediate area. The county's planning commission in December approved the new building, but with several conditions. Wal-Mart, a local watchdog group and the City of Hood River all appealed the decision to the county commission. Wal-Mart was hoping to see some conditions removed. The city and the watchdog group were hoping to see the building shot down altogether due to concerns about flooding and the proposed building's general incompatibility with the neighborhood.
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