Wal-Mart is seeking federal and state permission to fill in wetlands on Lady’s Island where the retail chain had hoped to build a 195,000-square-foot store, though the retailer said it has not decided if it will appeal Beaufort’s rejection of that building proposal.

The retailer on May 16 applied to the state Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for permission to fill in 0.39 acre of critical-area wetlands on the Airport Junction site.

“The purpose of the project is to facilitate construction of a new Wal-Mart store,” the application states.

Wal-Mart first filed plans with the city in January to build a Wal-Mart, two other stores and a fast-food restaurant on 40.8 acres of wooded property called Airport Junction near the Beaufort County Airport on Sea Island Parkway. Beaufort planning director Libby Anderson rejected the application, saying the development differed too greatly from the site’s master plan. Read More