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H 17°, L 4°The Madison City Council approved the construction of a new Target store near Hilldale Mall Tuesday, ending an extensive public and committee approval process.
After the city’s Plan Commission approved the Planned Unit Development in a meeting last week, the proposal received final approval by the council.
Representatives from Target came out in support of the proposal. Target Development Manager Jaci Bell said the current plan reflects the input of Madison residents.
Likewise, Ald. Chris Schmidt, District 11, who represents the Hilldale area, spoke in support of the project. Schmidt said while support for the project is “not universal,” feedback from his constituents has been generally positive.
“[Target representatives] have been very good to work with through the whole thing and very receptive to the public input we received,” Schmidt said. “I think that is reflected in the strong support for this project.”
Schmidt said representatives from Target first expressed interest in constructing a store last July and developed a plan by late September, at which point they presented the idea to district residents.
With almost 300 people in attendance at the initial informational meeting and a subsequent flood of emails, community input was high, Schmidt said.
Schmidt said the project did face opposition from residents in its initial stages. Main concerns were related to traffic on University Avenue, which Schmidt said developers took into consideration as they adapted their plans.
While in support of the project as a whole, Ald. Marsha Rummel, District 6, raised issue with the proposed parking arrangement, which will be located on the lower level of the store. Rummel said she was concerned with the parking facility’s intrusion on the surrounding green space.
However, the construction of the new Target, Schmidt said, would bring significant benefits to his district, providing a boost to Hilldale Mall and its surrounding area.
Furthermore, the close proximity of the store will reduce the amount of travel for residents, Schmidt said.
According to Bell, construction is planned to begin once the ground thaws in spring and is anticipated to be completed in the summer of 2011.
In addition to the new Target store, the council approved a city ordinance that would impose a fine on property owners who unlawfully remove snow, such as depositing it on city sidewalks.
After receiving numerous complaints from her district’s residents over the last three winters, Rummel said she went to city staff, proposing a fine be imposed on violators of city ordinance to recover costs incurred by the city.
Rummel said property owners dumping snow on sidewalks is a common occurrence, but the city has lacked a recourse to mitigate the problem up to this point. Imposing a fine, Rummel said, will “get people’s attention.”
The council passed the proposal without opposition or debate, which Rummel said is because the proposed ordinance is a “no-brainer.”
“It makes sense that if we’re going to require you to do something, there is a penalty if you don’t do it,” Rummel said.
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ahh has the Badger Herald turned into the Daily Prophet!?
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mad props for the harry potter reference. that photo is soo trippy!
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Hahahahahaha I love you <3
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follow the money trail here…this new commercial intrusion into an ALREADY disastrous intersection is just another perfect example of how rare common sense and integrity are in Madison today. Anyone who drives, bikes or walks through that intersection KNOWS what a mess it is already. To think that a new store the magnitude of Target will not make this worse is very naive. Where were the UW-Madison urban planning consultants on this fiasco? Attending a conference in Rome? I don’t expect much from city government anymore. I gave up on that folly years ago, but to see this disaster in the making actually get approval is just unbelievable. I can already see the For Sales signs in Shorewood Hills cropping up on lawns. The noise, the lights, the litter, the traffic and crowds are inevitable…what a mess.
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I drive through that intersection twice a day during rush hour. Never had a problem… Besides, Madison is a city; what do you expect?
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Honestly, Although the intersection is busy it isn’t the worse in town or it is it that bad in comparison to other intersection surrounding dense retail areas in other cities. At first I didn’t think that the target doesn’t quite fit with the retail district in the hilldale area but I’ve come around to the plan. It is way better then having an empty pit there for another 5-10 years or having more empty condos built there. The Target will be good for the hilldale area and for the campus community which travels to that area for shopping often.
I’d be interested in knowing if there will be more Saturday bus service down university. It is miserable right now. With downtown residents wanting to shop at Target on the weekends it should be increased.
I don’t understand the snow on the sidewalk issue. Aren’t residents responsible for shoveling the sidewalks in front of there houses already. Or is this people filling up trucks and dumping snow on others sidewalks. I just don’t get the problem or the need for a new fine more info. please?
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8:23 am, FTW! Daily Prophet! I love it!
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a gif? really?
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someone has been watching too much harry potter. why don’t you take it a step further and make that photo holographic.
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colin, check back in a couple of years when Target is pouring hundreds of cars per minute onto university at the same time that you are waiting on line by the fresh shrimp truck…it could take you 30 minutes to get to Whole Foods for that latte.