Upstate Lowdown: Whatever happened with that proposed Bass Pro Shops?

The future of a planned Bass Pro Shops retail development in Spartanburg County is still up in the air, although a local official says the company is still committed to its plans.

The project was announced with much fanfare in 2014. The plans included a 120,000-square-foot “mega store" near the intersection of Interstate 85 and Highway 101 as well as a hotel, Uncle Buck’s Fishbowl and Grill and a 12-lane bowling center and an aquarium.

Thomas Shilling asked about the project in Upstate Lowdown, a Herald-Journal and GoUpstate.com feature that allows readers to ask questions and invites them to become a part of the reporting process as the newspaper tracks down answers. Shilling's question was put on an Upstate Lowdown ballot with three other questions and won 51 percent of the vote, gaining more than twice as many votes as the next most popular question.

“I really like the Bass Pro model. I’ve got family up in North Carolina that drives down every other month to get to that Cabela’s location in Greenville,” Shilling said this week. “I really think they’d prefer a much bigger Bass Pro location, but they’re willing to make that drive because they enjoy visiting there so much.”

So are we likely to see the company move forward with plans for the massive destination store in the near future? The short answer: It's on hold and under review for now, according to Bass Pro Shops.

"We have temporarily placed this project on hold to assess our plans and timing," according to a statement from the company. "We remain in close contact with local officials and developers and may well proceed with the project at a future time to be determined. We greatly appreciate everyone's patience as we complete this review."

The initial plan was for the retail center to open in 2016, but Bass Pro Shops leadership said last year its purchase of rival retailer Cabela’s, which maintains its own sprawling store in Greenville, put that plan into a holding pattern.

Spartanburg County Councilman David Britt, who leads the council's Economic Development Committee, was closely involved with the company’s initial announcement. He said this week he’s remained in contact with Bass Pro Shop’s leadership, and he said the company’s director of real estate, Michael Dunham, has said the company is still interested in building a “destination facility” on the property.

“The short of it is that they say they’re still very interested,” Britt said.

Britt said other developers have offered the company more than the $7 million they paid for the property. “And they’ve not sold it,” Britt said. “So that’s a positive sign.”

He said the company is still eligible for incentives through the South Carolina Department of Revenue, so Bass Pro Shops still has the same options to move forward with the project when they announced their plans in April 2014.

“Retail is such a fluid space, though,” Britt said. “I think when they began this process they had no idea that the Cabela’s deal was even in the cards. When we started talking to them in 2013, no one thought they’d ever own one of their biggest competitors, but (Bass Pro Shops Founder and CEO) Johnny Morris still owns that property, and they say they’re still interested in moving forward at some point.”

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