It’s been 10 months since Smithfield’s Town Council approved mixed-use zoning for the Grange at 10Main subdivision that Joseph Luter IV and his father, former Smithfield Foods Chairman Joseph Luter III, are planning at the western edge of the town’s historic district.
But even with the Isle of Wight County Economic Development Authority’s recent vote agreeing to own a farmers market building that would anchor the Grange, there’s a lot of specifics to work out before any contracts are signed or any money changes hands.
“Some people would say it’s a done deal and that’s not the case,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Joel Acree.
That’s why county supervisors, after discussing the matter on Oct. 17, took no further action on its two-year-old commitment to partially fund the construction of the proposed market building.
In 2022, the Luters offered land and $1 million toward its construction conditioned on the town and county each agreeing to put up $1.4 million of the cost. Both governing bodies agreed to the Luters’ terms in October of that year.