Aug. 23--Despite rumors about a possible delay or cancellation, the proposed shopping center for Sugar Hill Road, with a Wal-Mart Supercenter as the anchor store, will be built as planned, said one of the developers for the project.

The planned shopping center first became public back in February. So far, the property along Sugar Hill Road has still not been sold to the developing company, WRS Inc. of Mount Pleasant, S.C.

However, Jim Price, a developer with WRS Inc., said there is no delay and his firm plans to close on the land in the middle of January. After that, WRS will start construction of the planned Shoppes at Marion.

"We will definitely close this deal," said Price. "We are excited."

The Web site for WRS features a color map of the proposed Shoppes at Marion with a 195,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter as the anchor.

However, rumors have been circulating on the Internet, some of which contend that the project will be delayed for years or may not happen at all.

"None of that is true," said Price. "There is no delay."

As for other stores and restaurants, Price said he could comment on which ones might be located there.

"We always let our clients make their own announcements," he said. "There will be quite a few regional and national tenants."

WRS has previously done business with such companies as Shoe Show, Rainbow Apparel, Firehouse Subs, Maurice's, Shoe Dept., Alltel/Verizon, H&R Block, Supercuts, Sprint PCS, Sherwin Williams, Cato, the UPS store, Payless Shoes, Radio Shack, Dollar Tree, The Little Gym, Marble Slab Creamery, Little Caesar's and others.

The shopping centers built by WRS also have standalone restaurants and businesses such as McDonald's, Arby's, Bank of America, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Waffle House, Applebee's, Sonic, Bennigan's, Taco Bell, Dairy Queen, First Bank, Bojangles, Mammoth Carwash, O'Charley's, Discount Tire and others.

Price said he's enjoyed working with County Manager Chuck Abernathy, City Manager Bob Boyette and Cliff McLarty, executive vice president of Diversified Asset Development Inc., in getting this shopping center built.

McLarty's company owns the land on Sugar Hill Road where the Blue Ridge Mobile Home Park now sits. Not long after the shopping center was first announced, about 40 families living in the mobile home park got notices telling them they had 180 days to move out. Friday was the last day that the mobile homes could sit on that land.

The last tenant moved out Saturday.

"Everybody is gone," said McLarty. "The engineering work has started right now. The developer is doing work now on the project. It's really going to be a boon for McDowell County."

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