Work on Hobby Lobby lot underway; William St. access coming soon

Access to William Street from the Hobby Lobby parking lot should be underway this summer, said developer Scott Rhodes, and other improvements are under construction now at the "Shoppes at South Kingshighway" development.

A plan proposed by Rhodes Development Co. and South K Inc. calls for several improvements to the shopping center, including adding landscaped areas, replacing structures and adding a driveway to William Street.

"The construction going on now is interior islands to add some landscaping, and redo the parking-lot lighting," Rhodes said.

Ameren will relocate some utilities, Rhodes said, which will improve parking-lot lighting.

Rhodes said Ameren gave the week of June 11 as the start date on their portion of the project.

After utility relocation is complete, Rhodes said, about 30 days later, the William Street right-in, right-out driveway can be constructed.

The driveway required approval from the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), which was granted in 2017, according to earlier reporting by the Southeast Missourian.

Islands along Kingshighway will be realigned, Rhodes said.

"We're ready to move on with the islands," Rhodes said. "We're waiting on Ameren to relocate some utilities."

Once the parking lot is renovated, Rhodes said, they can focus on putting buildings up to replace demolished structures, including the former Pizza Hut, EZ Express Carwash and China Town Buffet.

Captain D's, a fast-casual seafood restaurant, was built on the carwash site, and opened for business in February.

A special tax district was created to help fund the entrance/exit on William Street, which according to city documents will cost nearly $759,000. The district allows a sales tax of up to 1 percent to be levied on all retail sales in the district for up to 25 years to recover costs associated with the improvements, according to earlier reports.

mniederkorn@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3630