PINEHURST, N.C. — With its wide medians and canopy of pine trees, Midland Road is the essence of Pinehurst. However, residents are in an uproar over a proposal to build a 136,000-square-foot shopping center in the area.

Plans submitted by a Charlotte developer show the project anchored by a Harris Teeter grocery store. It is one of the most contentious issues to hit the village in years.

"On a scale of one to 10, it's a 10," resident Jack Naylor said.

Naylor's civic group ran an advertisement about the project in the local paper and got 1,100 responses in just three days.

"We think it's an amazing number. All but three have opposed the project," he said.

Residents are afraid allowing a shopping center will lead to other unwanted developments like a traffic light or tearing down the trees the village takes its name from.

"My phone rings a lot and as I say wherever I go, people stop me and are concerned," council member Virginia Fallon said.

Some councilmembers are inclined to kill the project, but there is a catch -- the land is already zoned for a shopping center. If the development goes forward, residents plan to put other tactics to work.

"A substantial number of the letters have said that if Harris Teeter puts a store in this project, they will boycott and boycott the existing store in Aberdeen," Naylor said.

The developer tells WRAL he is very sensitive to the concerns of Pinehurst residents. He says his plans are still a work in progress and he is willing to make changes to them.