HOLLY SPRINGS, GA-The heavily trafficked intersection of Interstate 575 and Sixes Road in this town of 3,500 permanent residents has sparked the interest of two developers who plan to build Cherokee County's first shopping centers across the highway from each other. The site is 20 miles north of Downtown Atlanta.

Colonial Properties Trust of Birmingham, AL is asking Holly Springs officials to rezone and annex a 39-acre tract owned by Northside Hospital-Cherokee at the northeast corner of I-575 and Sixes Road. CPT plans an estimated $31-million, 367,000-sf shopping center at the site plus a 114,000-sf home improvement retail store that will have a 28,000-sf garden center. Home Depot and Lowe's are the speculated candidates to occupy the planned quarters, area retail brokers tell GlobeSt.com.

Across the highway, Atlanta-based Centerpoint Development also plans to develop an estimated $35-million, 423,000-sf retail center on its 65-acre site, as GlobeSt.com previously reported. Another 35 adjoining acres Centerpoint owns already has been rezoned for a mixed-use of retail and residential, Holly Springs officials confirm for GlobeSt.com.