Planning Board approves changes to Publix at Shops of Marco

Note: This story has been updated to include a statement from Brian West, Publix spokesperson.

Marco Island Planning Board approved a resolution amending the site development plan for the Publix at Shops of Marco. 

The redevelopment of this site was approved in Dec. 2018 and it included the demolition of the existing Publix and construction of a new one at 175 S. Barfield Dr., according to a staff report.

When submitting documents to the city, however, the applicant did not include the revised elevations and therefore it was not approved.

"They had changed some of the elevations that weren't consistent with what we brought in front of the planning board and the City Council," said Daniel Smith, community affairs director of Growth Management, during a Planning Board meeting on Jan. 3.

The approved amendment includes changes like breaking up the building mass in the rear, the addition of Bahama shutters, changing the roof structures in the front, color and material changes, according to the report.

"What you are seeing today does not change the footprint of the building," said Jason Smalley, city planner. 

"The building and the parking is the same as it was reviewed last time," Smith said.

The new 48,000 square foot store is still in the early stages of permitting, according to Brian West, Publix spokesperson.

"The current store is a little more than 40,000 sq. ft., so the new store will be considerably larger," West wrote in an email sent to the Eagle on Jan. 21. "It will also include a pharmacy and a liquor store."

West could not say when will the old building be demolished.

"We do not have a timeline at this point, but should have an idea in the next few months," West wrote. 

From 2019:Waiting, wondering: What’s up with the Publix on Barfield? Is it closing or not?