‘Walmart does not have a contract with Selig for Suburban Plaza’ – Glen Wilkins, Walmart spokesman.
UPDATE (Nov. 16, 2011): Walmart plans 150,000 square-foot Decatur Supercenter
Decatur residents are flipping out over talk that Walmart is opening a store at Suburban Plaza.
Unlike the flurry of folks who posted rumors of Walmart’s intention, What Now Atlanta decided to go all old school and actually call Selig Enterprises, Inc. — the plaza’s developer — and Walmart for confirmation.
Bill Stogner, vice president of retail leasing for Selig told What Now Atlanta over the phone Tuesday there are no commitments from Walmart or any other tenants at this time.
“We are thoroughly researching the redevelopment of Suburban Plaza but have no commitments at this time,” Stogner said. “We are in the process of reviewing our options.”
Glen Wilkins, senior manager of public affairs and government relations for Walmart, told What Now Atlanta over the phone Tuesday there is no contract with Selig for Suburban Plaza.
“Selig has approached us,” Wilkins said. “Walmart is interested in the area but does not have a contract with Selig.”
Suburban Plaza Shopping Center
2619 North Decatur Road
Decatur, GA 30030
9 Responses
This is the second time DecaturMetro published or passed along rumors instead of contacting the available source to confirm a story. The first time was about a Decatur Thai place that was wrongly reported as closing. Whoever runs that blog needs to learn some journalism basics.
Really, that’s the insight you’ve added? That you’ve called them and they’ve responded “it’s not official, we have no contract”.
Great investigative journalism, did you get that from 20/20?
Passive-aggressiveness at its finest.
Atlanta retail and restaurant blog throwdown. Fight, fight, fight!
Many Decaturites like the earliest possible hint of potntial developments.
If we waited until Selig and/or Walmart officially confirmed, the locals could simply reas the construction signs, which would already be up..
Local blogs such as Decatur Metro and inDECATUR should try to specify the degree of certainty. Apparently Nick was assured by a reliable source this is in the works. Only time will tell if it’s true.
Exactly. If neighbors are concerned about this possible development, waiting for something to be inked into contracts would be a bit late. Both parties would prudently, and appropriately, use very conservative statements until the 11th hour.
Therefore, I see nothing wrong with a blogger bringing up something that is in discussion/planning stages. (I’m not that blogger by the way – passive aggressive? sure 🙂
If you want to contact Trader Joe’s executives about coming to Suburban Plaza, here are two important (and correct/up-to-date) names and titles, and their address:
Charles Pilliter
Executive VP/Operations
&
Brandt Sharrock
Vice President/Real Estate
Trader Joe’s
800 Shamrock Ave.
Monrovia, CA 91016
Thanks, Molly! It seems like Decatur residents may actually be able to have some sort of say in what goes in at Suburban Plaza, as nothing is contracted yet. So, I say, let’s all contact the company that we would like to see in that space! I have heard rumors over the years about Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and obviously, WalMart. Let’s not be passive about this!
update (nov. 16, 2011): Walmart plans 150,000 square-foot Decatur Supercenter: http://whatnowatlanta.com/2011/11/16/walmart-plans-150000-square-foot-decatur-supercenter/
–cjs