Total Wine will take about half the Stein Mart space, as seen in top image

Aug. 22. By Dave Vieser. After weeks of rumors, it’s official: Total Wine will occupy about half of the former Stein Mart store in the Shops at Fresh Market on Torrence Chapel Road. Cornelius officials expect to review the plans at this Friday’s Architectural Review Board Meeting.

“An upfit permit just came in for Total Wine to occupy approximately 21,600 square feet of the empty space,” said Aaron Tucker, senior planner for the Town of Cornelius.

HomeSense coming

The remainder of the space will become a HomeSense store—the first in North Carolina.

Background

An “upfit” is the modification of commercial space and usually refers to changes being made to the interior of the site.

What about Birkdale?

Total Wine in Birkdale / Photo: Visit Lake Norman

As for whether the Cornelius Total Wine will be in addition to or instead of their Birkdale Village store, it’s still unclear.

Total Wine has not responded to two inquiries from Cornelius Today.

Officials at Birkdale Village, where a major renovation is nearing completion, said “there is no plan for Total Wine to leave.” They have not renewed the lease of Cork Screw, as first reported by Business Today in July.

Meanwhile, Total Wine is hiring assistant managers in the Huntersville store. Click here to apply.