BY EDWARD D. MURPHY

Portland Press Herald

A new Marden's Surplus & Salvage store in Scarborough, originally expected to open late this fall or early this winter, won't open before next year.

Opening this year "is physically impossible -- not even in a dream," Ham Marden, president of the Maine-based discount chain, said Tuesday.

Marden said the company hasn't completed its purchase of the building from Wal-Mart. That retailer moved to a new site a short distance away and has been negotiating to sell its former store to Marden's since the summer.

Marden said the deal's closing was delayed because Marden's learned of several town requirements for improvements only a few days before the papers were to be signed. He said the requirements added $600,000 to $800,000 to Marden's costs.

Scarborough Town Planner Dan Bacon said the road for the new Wal-Mart runs through the original store's property. That meant the Planning Board had to review the site plan for the old store, taking into account the new road, when it reviewed plans for the new Walmart.

Bacon said the board approved the new site plan but required a right-turn lane off Payne Road and a redesigned entrance off Spring Street to fit in with the entrance to a new Wal-Mart.

Marden's asked to put up a performance guarantee -- essentially enough money to show that it could add the right-turn lane -- and get a traffic study done to determine whether the extra lane is really needed. The board agreed, Bacon said, and will meet with Marden's to review the study next year before making a final decision on the turn lane.

Bacon also said that Marden's asked to phase in improvements to the building's facade, and the board agreed.

Until the sale is complete, Marden's won't be able to get the building permit it needs to make repairs inside the store, Bacon said. Those fixes must be made before Marden's can get an occupancy permit.

Marden said the company is trying to get to the point where it can meet with Wal-Mart and seal the deal.

"There are several issues with the seller that we feel are close to being resolved, but are not quite resolved yet," he said. Marden said he couldn't be specific about the issues because of a confidentiality agreement with Wal-Mart.

"We're still optimistic about the project, but it will not be (open in time for) Christmas," he said. "It will probably be sometime in the first quarter" of 2010.