BANGOR – It’s official.

Construction of a 209,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter near the Bangor Mall is slated to begin at the end of May or beginning of June, City Engineer Jim Ring said Monday.

The city said in a news release Monday that the permitting and paperwork are complete and the giant retailer has closed on the purchase of a 50.6-acre site off Stillwater Avenue near Kittredge Road.

The $23.6 million store will replace the 114,000-square-foot Wal-Mart on Springer Drive. Wal-Mart already operates a Wal-Mart Supercenter in nearby Brewer.

A Wal-Mart spokesman, Chris Buchanan, did not return phone calls Monday.

Along with the Supercenter, which officials say should be completed by mid-May of 2008, will come traffic changes, conservation efforts and additional property tax revenue for the city.

Wal-Mart will undertake an estimated $3.5 million in road projects, with a strong emphasis on Stillwater Avenue.

“There are a lot of things that I and the city [see] as positive. It’s not just ‘the big store’ to us,” Ring said.

Before the store opens, he said, a section of Stillwater Avenue will be widened to five lanes, and some sections of Hogan Road will be expanded, too. In addition, traffic light upgrades and additional traffic signals are in the works.

“Widening Stillwater is something we long identified as necessary up in that area,” Ring said. “The major ones [traffic improvements] have to be done in order for them to open.”

The city plans to construct a $300,000 Hogan Road extension with Wal-Mart contributing $250,000. The city could end up paying less than $50,000 for the project because of possible help from other developers.

Throughout the process, environmental issues played a significant role in the location decision.

The store will be built near the Penjajawoc watershed. Because of that, 26 acres have been set aside for conservation and a storm-water management system will be used.

Furthermore, 25 percent of Wal-Mart’s property tax proceeds will be set aside for conservation and environmental measures.

The Supercenter is expected to generate $350,000 a year in property taxes, Ring said.

“That amounts to quite a bit of money in a 10-year period,” Ring said.

But the old Springer Drive Wal-Mart building has no new tenant so far, likely affecting the tax revenue it produces.