Photo by Jon Anderson
Big Lots, after being open at that location for 7½ years, closed in February 2025. Photo by Jon Anderson.
The Hoover City Council on Monday plans to consider a tax rebate agreement for the redevelopment of the former Big Lots store at the Riverchase Crossing shopping center.
A development company from Tennessee is proposing to buy the part of the shopping center that contains the former Big Lots space and convert the 37,793-square-foot space into two stores — a 27,278-square-foot HomeSense store and a 10,515-square-foot Shoe Dept store, said Ken Grimes, Hoover’s economic development director.
Big Lots, after being open at that location for 7½ years, closed in February 2025, and the space has been vacant ever since and not generating any tax revenue for the city, Grimes said.
The new development company, NRE Riverchase, plans to invest almost $10.5 million into redeveloping the site, including $8.8 million to buy the land and renovate the building and $1.7 million for “soft costs” such as professional services, taxes, permits and fees, Grimes said.
Such an investment would help Hoover fill one of its oldest shopping centers and bring in some new brands, Grimes said. This would be the first HomeSense store in Alabama and the first Shoe Dept in Hoover, he said.
HomeSense is affiliated with T.J. Maxx, as is the Sierra store that recently opened in the Riverchase Crossing shopping center. It sells discounted home furnishings and eclectic decor, including rugs and lighting options.
In return for helping the city redevelop, the developer is asking for up to $1.9 million in sales tax rebates, getting a rebate of 50% of sales tax proceeds for the two stores going into the Big Lots space over 10 years, Grimes said. The developer expects the $1.9 million cap would be reached by year seven, he said.
The tax rebate would not apply to the existing stores and other spaces on that end of the shopping center, such as the Napa Auto Parts store, Grimes said.
In other business Monday, the Hoover City Council will consider a request to deannex the 7-acre Trinity Presbyterian Church property at 7160 Cahaba Valley Road, which is directly across Alabama 119 from Tattersall Park.
The church is trying to start a K-8 school next week but did not realize it needed “conditional use” approval to open the school due to the property’s zoning, Pastor Rich Lusk said. Getting conditional use approval in Hoover likely would take several months, City Planner Mac Martin said.
Councilwoman Ashley Lovell noted that if the property were deannexed from Hoover, the city of Hoover would have less control of future uses of the land. The church potentially could sell its property for some other use, she said.
Lusk said the church already has hired an architect and picked out a general contractor to build a $13 million new sanctuary and said the church is committed to this location and has no plans to move or sell to anyone else.
City Attorney Charlie Waldrep said the City Council may want to consider making the deannexation contingent on the property never being allowed to be used for anything but a church or school, but a representative for the church said adding such a restrictive covenant to the property might hinder the church’s ability to get financing for its construction project.
The Hoover City Council also on Monday is scheduled to consider whether to
- Approve a Grandview Medical Center freestanding emergency department at 2137 Valleydale Road
- Buy .22 acres from the Trace Crossings Residential Association to help make way for the new Interstate 459 Exit 9 interchange
- Approve a day habilitation and respite services program in the shopping center at 3309 Lorna Road, Suite 203
- Grant licenses to sell consumable hemp products at the Sunmed Your CBD Store at 2341 John Hawkins Parkway, Gallery Smoke Shop at 3065 Lorna Road, Suite D, and Piggy Wiggly grocery store at 2148 Tyler Road, Suite 104
- Declare properties at 1017 Alford Ave., 2337 Tyler Road, 3700 Stone Ridge Terrace and 405 Cahaba River Estates as public nuisances due to high weeds and/or grass
- Participate in the severe weather preparedness sales tax holiday allowed by the state during the last full weekend in February
Editor's note: This story was updated at 10:56 p.m. on Aug. 7 to correct the name of the development company seeking the sales tax rebate. It is NRE Riverchase.
