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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 11, 2006 Groups appeal Wal-Mart approval By MEG LANDERS Mail Tribune A Wal-Mart Supercenter approved for south Medford will come back before the City Council, thanks to two appeals filed by local groups. Citizens for Responsible Development and the South Gateway Center Partners argue in their appeals, filed Friday, that Wal-Mart should be required to conduct a comprehensive study of the 205,693-square- foot store’s impacts on traffic. The citizens group also argues the size of the building makes it incompatible with adjacent development. Meanwhile, Wal-Mart has filed its own appeal — over two Marriott hotels planned across the street. The supercenter was approved by the Site Plan and Architectural Commission on March 17 after being appealed by the citizens group and South Gateway developers in 2004. The South Gateway partners say they haven’t changed their argument. "It’s the same old grounds," said developer Bob Kaczor. Advertisement Kaczor has argued that if a traffic study shows the current system will fail, then Wal-Mart — not taxpayers — would have to pay for the improvements. Lori Cooper, senior assistant city attorney, said the citizens group has standing on the site design portion but not on traffic impacts, an assertion the citizens group disputes. The three-story Marriott hotels, approved by the site plan commission on March 17, was appealed Friday by Greg Hathaway, the Portland attorney representing Wal-Mart. The hotels are planned on Center Drive across from the supercenter site. Hathaway could not immediately be reached for comment Monday afternoon. But Cooper said Wal-Mart’s appeal is a strategic move that allows it the right to object should the council require a traffic study for the supercenter. Wal-Mart could argue that if it is required to do a traffic study, then Marriott should be, too. Tim Hovet of Sycan Development Corp., which proposed the hotel project, declined comment because he said he had not yet read the appeal. The Wal-Mart Supercenter was first proposed for the 19.5-acre site between Center Drive and Highway 99, the former home of Miles Field, in 2003. The site plan commission approved the project but the City Council rejected its approval in 2004. Wal-Mart appealed to the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals, which returned the issue to the council, saying it did not properly explain its reasoning and did not adequately explain why a traffic study was not required for the application. The council then sent it back to the commission, which approved the architectural and landscape portion of a revised proposal in February and in March stuck by its decision not to require any further study of traffic impacts. City staff have not yet reviewed the appeals to determine their recommendation. A public hearing is tentatively set for the 7 p.m. May 4 City Council meeting, Council Chambers, City Hall, 411 W. Eighth St., Medford. Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail Groups appeal Wal-Mart approval ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Computer Security Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Send Flowers California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Hammocks Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Email Security Advertisement s Advertisement