Amid sweltering temperatures Thursday morning, Flowood mayor Gary Rhoads and other dignitaries celebrated the groundbreaking of a mix-used area that is part of an estimated $500 million mixed residential and commercial development called Waterpointe.
This part, known as the Heights at Waterpoint is a "traditional neighborhood development," or TND , the "town within a town" would stretch 800,000 square feet in commercial space alone with 240 luxury units. It will also have a 250-car parking garage that will be the first parking garage in Rankin County.
The entire development in the city of just under 11,000 people is billed as a destination for shopping, dining, entertainment and events in a walkable district with a downtown feel. When completed, it is expected to have a total 560 family homes, according to a previous Clarion Ledger story.
"This project is important to us to help produce a community that people will not only call home, but in having total control of the process, we want to deliver a quality product," said Toby Easterling of Stoa Group, the group in charge of this project, which builds resident-driven developments across the South. "We own these projects and we aren't just trying to make a profit. We want people a have a quality experience while living in these developments."
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The Heights at Waterpointe is expected to be completed in 18 months. Along with the 240 "high-end luxury" living units, it will have a 7,000-square-foot clubhouse that will include onsite leasing staff as well as a co-working space and a 24-hour fitness space, a yoga room and game room. There will be a dog park, outdoor grilling area and a resort-style pool.
The entire development of Waterpointe will sit on 240 acres located just east of the East Metro Parkway, south of Lakeland Drive.
Rhoads said the city in 2008 designated the land a "smart growth district" to encourage urban development. Smart growth districts are usually pedestrian-centric, modernized and eco-friendly planned developments that promote a range of housing opportunities and mixed land use, according to smartgrowthamerica.com.
Its central idea, Rhoads said, is to build residences around a downtown commercial space, called a gallery front, with larger box stores and boutique style offices.
Community Bank is at the center of the town square and is already built and doing business.
The development will sit next to an existing 20-acre lake. A plan for restaurants, walking and bicycle trails and a park for waterfront events is also in the works.
"This is another part of the town center and has been in development for years and years," Rhoads said Thursday. "Everything has to be built a certain way. The people that bought the first houses a couple of years ago know what the end result is going to be and when it is completed, there will be no depreciation from start to finish. So, today's groundbreaking starts the work of bringing enough people to have customers for other commercial developments like restaurants and retail."
Rhoads said the city is already in discussions with restaurants that are interested in locating in the development. However, no announcements could be made at this time.
Rhoads said the city, county and developer last year entered into a $5.2 million tax increment financing bond deal, also known as TIFs, to finance the construction of the infrastructure in the public right of way.
Ross Reily can be reached by email at rreily@gannett.com or 601-573-2952. You can follow him on Twitter @GreenOkra1.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Luxury apartments part of $500 million development in this Metro city
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