MONROE - Monroe Police Chief Fred Kelley said he's "concerned" that the higher volume of traffic on West 6th Street will cause problems.
He said traffic to the Marketplace and Walmart could cause longer lines at the stop lights. However, the traffic light has helped keep the traffic moving, Kelley said.
"I'm concerned about the number of cars that could be in line at the stop light," he said. "The plans (for Marketplace) were looked at and we think it will be OK."
Officers continue to see people driving faster than 25 miles per hour on West 6th Street to and from Walmart. Kelley said officers have written tickets and there has been an effort made to patrol the area.
"People still tend to drive about 35 miles per hour in that area," Kelley said. "Drivers need to be aware that it might seem like a rural area, but it's part of the city. They will get a ticket if they're speeding."
- Brian Gray
"Nothing definite yet," said T.J. Butler, store manager of ProCellular. "I'm hoping by the end of February."
ProCellular, now located in Honey Creek Mall on West 8th Street, is waiting for a 1,500-square-foot store in the new mall.
Butler believes the new location will give the business more visibility.
"A lot of people don't even know we're here," he said.
The women's clothing store, Maurice's, also located in Honey Creek Mall, is now looking at a possible mid- to late-March moving date, according to store manager, Samantha Risseeuw.
She said her corporate office has been fluid in its expectation of the moving date, which could be any time between February and April.
Radio Shack, which recently agreed to make the move from West 8th Street, expects to get into their new "super Shack" store by early March, said Dave Gombosi, President of G.E.S. Corp (Gombosi Elect Solutions.)
"We're moving from 2,600 square feet to about 4,700 square feet," he said.
The added space will allow Radio Shack to carry about 1,000 new products, including computer parts, and to set up special locations for U.S. Cellular.
Radio Shack negotiated for Wise Smith, owner of the mall, to handle the city building permits for interior work as well as to use local contractors.
"There are a lot of local contractors on the job," Gombosi said. "We negotiated hard for that."
Gombosi said he was told Friday that local painters and drywall installers were hired for interior work.
Tricon Construction Group has been the contractor for the outside of the building. Double D Concrete and Gentz Electric were also contracted to work on the project.
The city issued a building permit for the 31,200-square-foot mall Oct. 28, 2009.
Building permits, valid for two years, do not require builders to give an expected completion date, according to Mayor Ron Marsh last week. No city building permits for interior work have been issued yet, he added.