As of Wednesday, a Planning Commission discussion was scheduled for Tuesday, July 15, at 10 a.m. to reconsider how to access the site, which sits at the corner of Route 26 and Ridge Road.

Stewart Young, vice president at Security Development Corporation which owns the property on which Target may locate, said that Target requires full access onto Route 26 in order to put a store at that location.

"[Target] led us to believe it was full service or forget it," said Young.

Last fall the county Planning Commission voted to allow full access to the Target off Route 26. But since then, the State Highway Administration has sent a recommendation to the Planning Commission that that decision be reconsidered, said Bruce Waldron development review coordinator for the county. The state's plan is to limit access onto Route 26 and utilize a landscaped median down the center of the road, according to State Highway Administration Project Manager Wes Mitchell, who spoke at the June meeting of the Freedom Area Citizens Council. Since Route 26 is a state highway, the state has the authority to approve or disapprove access points, said Waldron.

Young said that he is considering asking the commission to delay the discussion so that he has time to prepare, in case the members tell him full access is not possible.

No site plan has yet been turned in for the 20 acres of general business zoning, said Waldron, However, Young said that the Target store could be at the east end of the property, while the rest of the property could have restaurants and potentially some retail that did not compete with Target.

Should the discussion go forward as planned on Tuesday, Waldron said that the public would have a chance to comment.

Three access possibilities exist, said Waldron. The first would be full access to Target off Route 26, or possibly allowing traffic to only turn right in to and right out of Target. However, navigating Route 26 and its "suicide" turn lanes is already a little tricky, said Waldron.

Target shoppers could also come in by Ridge Road, but Waldron said that would be tough because cars can back up so far at that intersection and "there isn't enough queuing space."

A final option would be using Kali Drive, which makes a loop branching off Ridge Road. Waldron said that there was opposition from local residents to bringing that type of traffic into the neighborhood. However, he said a possible solution could be to break Kali Drive into two parts, separating the commercial from the residential traffic.

The county requested that the developer pay for traffic studies, which Waldron said have been submitted for review. Young said that the studies show that it would work better to have an intersection at the access point, rather than right in, right out configuration or going through back roads.

If, on Tuesday, the Planning Commission denies direct access, Young said he wasn't sure what his next step would be. That is why he would like to have the meeting postponed.