Ray’s expansion plans delayed for re-working

Construction of a bigger and more modern Ray’s Food Place has been delayed but is still on the drawing board.

As The Nugget reported last October, C & K Market, Inc., which owns Ray’s, is planning to build a new store behind the current location on West Highway 20 in the Three Wind Shopping Center. The existing store will be demolished making room for additional parking.

C & K Market Project Supervisor Kevin Crumley originally hoped to begin building the new store by now. However, Crumley is taking time to address the concerns of homeowners next door. The new Ray’s would back up closer to The Pines housing development where residents are concerned about noise and privacy.

“We’re trying to do it the right way,” said Crumley. He added C & K is re-drawing the site plan to take neighbor’s concerns intoconsideration.

For example, the new plan will reroute traffic.

After a meeting with a few dozen homeowners, Crumley said C & K wanted to go back to the drawing board to ensure The Pines residents are “happy with it.”

“I didn’t hear any opposition to the new store — they were very positive about that,” added Crumley.

Crumley now has his eye on 2006: “That’s the timeline we’re working with.” However, he added, “things could get faster” depending on how the re-worked plan is received and how the application moves through the city’s permit process.

The store will grow from 30,000 to 42,000 square feet.