Wal-Mart sued by development company

Granite Development said Monday it has filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart, alleging the retailer reneged on an agreement to build a store in southeast Raleigh, N.C.

According to a report in the Triangle Business Journal, Granite sold a property in 2007 to Wal-Mart. As part of the sale, the two companies signed an agreement specifying that the retailer would construct a store while Granite would develop surrounding parcels.

Granite said Wal-Mart abandoned the project in violation of the agreement. The company has filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina for breach of contract, among other claims, and is seeking actual damages that exceed $75,000 and unspecified punitive damages.

Wal-Mart spokeswoman Daphne Moore told the Journal that officials had not yet seen the lawsuit but that they knew the contract was in place when they made the decision to withdraw the plans for the southeast Raleigh project.