By Eileen Fleming
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wwno/local-wwno-973237.mp3
New Orleans, La. – Stirling Properties of Covington is proposing turning about 6 and a half acres at North Carrollton Avenue near Canal Street into a retail development called Mid-City Market. It would be anchored by a 53-thouand-square-foot Winn Dixie, flanked with about 20-thousand square feet of retail space. Developers say it would be designed to accommodate pedestrian traffic. And they say it could complement the proposed Lafitte Greenway bicycle corridor that could connect with Armstrong Park near the French Quarter.
Lynn Krudop has lived in the neighborhood since 2004. She got back into her home about a year after Katrina, but businesses haven't come back.
"It's horrible. We've had homeless people in and garbage and it's just awful. So I'm looking at it as anything is an improvement."
She says she's concerned about increasing truck traffic, but looks forward to the revenue it could generate for the city. She agreed with several speakers that local businesses should be featured.
Kimberly Morand says the design is too generic, and could become a prototype for future developments in the city.
"I live in Mid-City and I love Mid-City because it has a feel of homey-ness and certain architectural design. And I would hate for us to be a suburban-Atlanta-looking shopping center, Something that looks like Metairie. Something that looks like just suburban America. I don't want that. I want to continue to have Mid-City feel like my home and have an architectural design that complements the area."
Stacey Rogers has lived in Mid-City for 15 years, now about a block from the back end of the proposed Winn-Dixie.
"I think we need something in Mid-City, I'm just concerned with how much of this stuff we need. So my concerns are the number of stores that they want to put in at location because I think it's going to draw way too much traffic."
Stirling says it hopes to break ground in September, with retail openings in the fall of 20-12.
For WWNO. I'm Eileen Fleming