By Maggie Beamguard
Insider Editor
The familiar sight of bulldozers and backhoes greeted travelers at one of the most heavily traveled intersections of Moore County in August.
The heavy equipment is making way for a Tractor Supply Co. at the corner of NC 211 and 73 in West End.
Several parcels were cleared and an old home on the property was knocked down to make way for the eventual rural lifestyle retailer.
The closest Tractor Supply Co. stores near West End and the greater Seven Lakes are located in Vass, Biscoe and Rockingham. This new store will be the second Tractor Supply Co. in Moore County.
As the first “big box” store in this part of Moore County, it could foreshadow further development along the NC 211 corridor, especially as the county moves forward with extending sewer westward from Pinehurst. Such development is welcomed by some and bemoaned by others who wish the area to remain unchanged.
The parcels comprising approximately six acres are under development by Baseline Development Companies, LLC . David A. Long is manager of the development company, which sought “highway commercial conditional” zoning for the four parcels.
Moore County commissioners determined at a previous meeting in that the development plan satisfied aesthetic architectural elements and landscaping.
“I don’t know that everybody is excited about having it there, because we are taking five acres of residential land and we are turning it into commercial,” said Commissioner Jim Von Canon at the time. “And it’s going in next to a 1903 historic church and in people’s backyards. But, I think the devil they know is better than the devil they don’t know.”
The developer did not respond to inquiries in time for deadline.
Contact Maggie Beamguard at maggie@thepilot.com.
