INDIAN LAND -- A big-box retailer - likely Wal-Mart - is looking to acquire a large parcel of undeveloped property on Hwy. 521 near the intersection of Hwy. 160 East.

Stan Smith, Indian Land's representative on the Lancaster County Council, said, "I've been hearing about a Wal-Mart coming in for sometime."

Although he pointed out that "nothing is for sure," Smith was emphatic in his belief that it's more than a rumor. "I heard it would be next to where Crosland is building an office park on 521," he added, referring to a North Carolina-based developer which owns the property.

Other sources have also said Wal-Mart is looking at that parcel.

Smith, whose term ends Jan. 1, when representative-elect Bryan Vaughn is sworn in, complained that county officials have been courting Wal-Mart without including the council.

"We all know a Wal-Mart's coming, but we've all been kept in the dark," he said. "I think it's coming, but right now that's just hearsay."

County Administrator Chap Hurst couldn't agree more. "A lot of big chain stores are looking at that area," he said, declining to specify which ones.

"That area seems to be where most of these folks are looking - the vicinity of [Hwy.] 160 to the north. But that's not to say anything has happened yet."

Hurst added, "Until you get something, it's not happening and no one has made a commitment that they are coming."

However, another county official, speaking off the record, said Wal-Mart is close to making an offer to Crosland for the site. Crosland official Mike Biledau did not return several calls from the Fort Mill Times seeking comment.

A Wal-Mart spokesman, Glen Wilkins, acknowledged, "We're aware of the area and we're watching it, monitoring it, keeping an eye on it."

However, he said, there is no paperwork indicating the Bentonville, Ark.-based company is preparing to buy land in the upper Panhandle nor to file any of the necessary applications with the county.

Wilkins did speculate on Wal-Mart moving into Indian Land. Asked if he thinks shoppers would be drawn to that site - even though Wal-Mart has a supercenter nearby in Rock Hill and just over the border in North Carolina, and appears destined to build a super center in Tega Cay - he said, It's a growing community and service is demanded by residents."

Discussing the controversy that erupted when Wal-Mart's plans for Tega Cay off Hwy. 160 West went public, Wilkins said, "One of the things Wal-Mart would do differently [if it came to Indian Land] is meet with people ahead of time and ask the community what they would like us to do. We would listen to the concerns of residents about mitigating traffic or whatever and how we could work together to fix problems."

He also drew a distinction between Tega Cay, where commercial growth has been rapid, and the upper Panhandle, where development is just starting to accelerate.

"Not every area is the same," Wilkins said.

Hurst, meanwhile, said a reason the Crosland property is so attractive is the county's plan to widen Hwy. 160 East. That project will be a major component of a growth conference the county is hosting Feb. 3.

"You only get one shot at this road. If we do not do the best we can do it, it will not be an asset," he said.

Hurst said the goal is to develop the upper Panhandle on par with thriving Ballantyne, just over the North Carolina border.

"If you don't reflect the same environment as Ballantyne, you won't be able to entice people across the border. The fact is, we're going to have some growth. You can't stop growth. But it's the quality of growth and the impact that translates into what it's all about."