By MONROE ROARK
mroark@TheCitizenNews.com

Kinko's and Simmons Bettersleep are the first two tenants lined up for the Fayette Promenade retail development, which should be open early next year.

A three-acre portion of the 30 acres owned by Fayette Promenade LLC has been approved by the Fayetteville Planning and Zoning Commission for development of about 31,000 square feet of retail space, with construction likely to begin by mid-September, according to project manager Monica Lozoff.

Fayette Promenade is not the same company that developed the Uptown Square shopping center next door, which includes Barnes & Noble as well as Linens & Things. Lozoff said there has been some confusion about that, with some city officials displeased over how the Linens & Things development turned out.

The only area where those two parties are connected is the agreement to develop the loop road that runs in front of the site and will eventually become a public road, Lozoff said. Since the current development only has right-in/right-out access from Ga. Highway 85, the road was built to allow traffic back onto the highway in the opposite direction by way of the traffic light next to Office Depot.

The initial three-acre tract that has already been approved will not contain anything as large as Barnes & Noble or Linens & Things, Lozoff said, but larger tenants on future portions of the overall site are possible, depending upon the market and interest from prospective tenants. Most of the 30 acres goes back away from Hwy. 85 in a “long rectangle,” as Lozoff put it.

There is no need for the company to appear before the city again concerning the initial portion of the development. “Once the Planning Commission approved site plans and elevations, we were good to go,” Lozoff said. “I think the city's been really good about working with us.”

Plans for the next phase could begin at any time, even before the first portion is completed, depending upon tenant interest, she added.