Neptune Beach residents will get their first formal say on a plan to replace the vacant Kmart on Atlantic Boulevard with a 150-room hotel and shopping center.

The city's Community Development Board holds a public hearing on the proposal, called Town Center West, at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Neptune Beach City Council Chambers, 116 First St., according to the city's meeting notice.

Developer TBR Neptune is seeking development plan approval and variances for a roughly 133,000-square-foot, three-story hotel and about 90,000 square feet of shopping center space with shared parking at 500 Atlantic Blvd., News4Jax reported, citing the Jax Daily Record.

The Duval County Property Appraiser's website lists the property owner as TBR Neptune Owner, with TriBridge Residential in Atlanta as part of its principal business address, according to the Daily Record.

The Kmart closed in July 2016. Before the property sold in 2019, earlier development plans called for tearing down existing structures and building a mix of apartments and retail space, News4Jax reported. That plan was not completed.

Neptune Beach Mayor Cori Bylund told the Jax Daily Record the project is "the biggest development for Neptune Beach in decades."

An attorney representing the property owner said in a statement provided to First Coast News that the owner chose the development version best received by elected officials and the public at an earlier City Council workshop. The attorney described the project as a walkable space with a hotel, restaurants, office and retail.

The development could also affect traffic on Lemon Street, which connects the site to Beaches Town Center and the beach. The North Florida Transportation Planning Organization, or TPO, is studying the corridor.

Clark Letter with the TPO told First Coast News the agency walked the corridor with city staff and is evaluating design changes to handle new traffic volumes. The TPO expects to finish the Lemon Street study around June or July, Action News Jax reported.

If the Community Development Board approves the plan, it heads to the Neptune Beach City Council, likely in November.