Now that Whole Foods is open in Lakewood, we thought it was time to re-visit what’s happening with the vacant piece of land on the northwest corner of Richmond and Abrams. Robb Parks, the owner’s rep for the site, had this update: "I do not have an update on the land."
Awhile back, when the former Mustang Auto/Cafe Brazil site was scraped to make room for the new Wachovia bank, the land owners posted a sign on the vacant parcel and encouraged callers. Soon, the sign was gone, and the landowners said they were going to table sales discussions until Whole Foods arrived in hopes of boosting the eventual sales/lease price for the land.
Well, Whole Foods is here, but so is the troubled economy. Parks’ comment that there’s no news makes sense: Real estate development is more or less dead for awhile, and with Wachovia now owned by Wells Fargo, I have to wonder whether the new Wachovia building will be the ultimate survivor or whether Wells Fargo will keep its bank lobby down the street in the 6301 Gaston bank tower and put the new facility on the market. I imagine we’ll find out during the next six months or so.
