A 36,000-square-foot grocery store and other commercial buildings could be in the works for property off South 17th Street.
 
A conceptual site plan for developer Leon Capital Group shows an unnamed grocery store, a 45,000-square-foot office building and more than 10,000 square feet of retail space in a third structure, in a 12-acre area bordered by South 17th Street and near John D. Barry Drive.

The property involved includes 4301 S. 17th St., 807 John D. Barry Drive and a portion of 3534 S. College Road.
 
The development concept, called Arbor Commons on the plan, is the subject of a community meeting 6-7 p.m. April 27 in the Longleaf Room of the New Hanover County Executive Center, 2141 Military Cutoff Road.
 
The site would require a conditional district rezoning, according to a letter to adjacent property owners from Cindee Wolf, land planner and owner of Design Solutions. That rezoning request is part of the city of Wilmington Planning Commission’s meeting agenda for May 4, when a public hearing on the potential rezoning will be held.
 
While Wolf’s letter called the grocery store “exciting” and “new,” it did not disclose a specific grocery chain or other possible Arbor Commons tenants. An official with Leon Capital Group declined to comment on the proposal.

The local commercial real estate firm that is working with Leon Capital Group on recruiting tenants and other aspects of the Arbor Commons project is Eastern Carolinas Commercial Real Estate.

"We've got a lot of prospects for the property" in terms of potential medical, office and retail tenants, said Nicholas Silivanch, vice president of retail, development and investment for ECCRE.
 
Grocery store development in the Wilmington area has been on the upswing in recent years. Discount grocery store firm Aldi has proposed the construction of a store on South College Road, on land about half a mile away from the potential Arbor Commons site.
 
Aldi competitor Lidl, also a discount grocery store chain, recently paid $2.75 million for property on which the company plans to build a 36,000-square-foot grocery store on Eastwood Road.