The development group behind Buffalo Ridge Center - home to Carmike's Cherry Blossom 14 theater and a planned Lucky's Market grocery store - reached an agreement with Garfield Township over a legal dispute in 13th Circuit Court Friday.

TC Center Partners filed a lawsuit against Garfield Township and Township Planner Rob Larrea accusing the parties of unjustly withholding permits from the company to begin construction on Lucky's Market. Buffalo Ridge Center is part of a planned unit development (PUD), the terms of which call for TC Center Partners to construct a public bike path through the property in exchange for zoning concessions. Garfield Township issued a violation notice to TC Center Partners in May for not having the path constructed yet, and refused to issue demolition or construction permits for Lucky's Market or a final occupancy permit for Cherry Blossom 14 until the issue was resolved.

Judge Thomas Power heard brief comments from both sides Friday before telling the parties he was taking a break so they could attempt to come to an agreement on their own. When court reconvened, the parties had negotiated acceptable terms, which Power entered in as an official court order. The order stipulates TC Center Partners must commence construction on the bike path in 2016, and have the path completed on or before July 31, 2017. In exchange, Garfield Township will immediately drop the development's violation notice and issue the necessary demolition/costruction permits for Lucky's and final occupancy permit for Cherry Blossom 14. Power dismissed the case without costs to either party.

TC Center Partners Principal Joe Sarafa tells The Ticker "everybody's a winner" in the negotiated outcome. "The township gets a new valuable addition to their retail landscape with new jobs and an increased tax base, plus a new public trail," says Sarafa. "In the end, there were no losers." While Sarafa says Lucky's representatives were "very concerned about their (store opening) timeline being pushed back," he spoke to the company Friday and received reassurance the store will move ahead as planned. "We can start demolition next week," he says. "We should be open by the second quarter of 2017."