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Board approves Home Depot grant agreement to clear and redevelop Fashion Square site
Summary
The board approved a development grant agreement to rebate up to $750,000 of incremental property tax receipts over 10 years to Home Depot to help cover demolition, asbestos abatement and brownfields remediation at Fashion Square Mall; the company committed to reserve right‑of‑way for a Hillsdale Drive realignment and to complete the store and garden center by late 2025.
Albemarle County supervisors voted to approve a development grant agreement on Aug. 21 that rebates up to $750,000 of incremental real‑property tax receipts over 10 years to Home Depot USA, Inc., to offset extraordinary demolition and brownfield remediation costs tied to redeveloping the former Sears at Fashion Square Mall.
Deputy Economic Development Director JT Newberry told the board the remediation and asbestos abatement estimates on that parcel were in the range of $850,000–$1,000,000 and that the proposed rebate would bridge that gap. "If approved tonight, the county would be rebating up to $750,000 of real property tax to the company over a period of 10 years," Newberry said. In return, Home Depot agreed to accelerate construction, to dedicate up to 50 feet of right‑of‑way to the Hillsdale Drive realignment envisioned in the Rio‑29 small‑area plan, and to market adjacent parcels such as the former Red Lobster outparcel.
Economic development staff framed the deal as a catalyst step to spur broader redevelopment of the Rio‑29 quadrant and to correct long‑running declines in assessed value for key parcels. The board approved the resolution by roll call vote after supervisors said the public‑private arrangement offered good value and would quickly generate sales and property tax receipts.
