Editor's Note: This version has been updated to reflect the decision of city planning officials concerning an Eastwood Road proposal.

Grocery store chains looking to expand in North Carolina have placed the Wilmington area on their shopping lists.

Wilmington City Council on Tuesday approved the zoning of about 13 acres at the corner of Market Street and Middle Sound Loop Road to allow the construction of Ogden Market Place, a shopping center expected to be anchored by Publix.

“We would like to break ground within the next 60 to 90 days,” said Charlie Worthen, principal of Halpern Enterprises Inc., the company developing Ogden Market Place.

Some of the next steps will be officially announcing the anchor tenant, submitting final plans to the city for approval, and obtaining permits, Worthen said Wednesday. At this time of year, he said, construction will likely take about a year from the day workers start clearing and grading the property.

City planning officials Wednesday night decided to delay making a decision about rezoning 10 acres at 1511 Eastwood Road to allow a 36,000-square-foot grocery store, as yet unnamed, and a two-story, 24,000-square-foot commercial building, according to the city's website.

In Carolina Beach, the town council will hold a public hearing at its meeting Aug. 11 to consider a conditional use permit for a 53,000-square-foot Harris Teeter at 1000 and 1010 N. Lake Park Boulevard, according to meeting documents.

The permit applicant is BMS Associates Inc. and the property owner Jubilee Carolina LLC. According to the council’s agenda documents, the owners have also requested a 5,480-square-foot area to the north of the building, expected to be used for future expansion, to be included for approval.

The property will contain a grocery store, pharmacy, coffee store and fuel center next to Lake Park Boulevard, the agenda says.

Grocery store chains in and outside of the U.S. have been circling their carts around potential development sites in North Carolina at an increased pace this year, according to media reports. In one example, a Publix spokeswoman confirmed that the chain is looking for an uptown Charlotte location, according to a Charlotte Business Journal story in July. This year, German-based discount grocer Lidl, a competitor of another German chain, Aldi, announced plans to expand into the U.S., later saying it plans to establish a regional headquarters and distribution center in North Carolina’s Alamance County, media outlets reported July 1.

Despite a cascade of announcements about chain expansions, along with the revamping of existing stores like Lowes Foods, developers don’t expect the grocery store market to be saturated any time soon.

“As the town grows and the population grows, these guys know what they’re doing,” said Worthen, referring to grocery store chains in general.

Worthen’s company is working on shopping center projects, many anchored by grocery stores, throughout the Southeast.

“It’s a competitive business, obviously, like anything, so some will fail and others will thrive. But they analyze an area and know if there’s room or opportunity for them to be in there. It’s a big investment from their perspective,” he said.