Gulfport Town Center bringing 200 apartments to downtown. Here are the details
A $50 million mixed use development that will add 200 luxury apartments in the center of downtown Gulfport is ready to proceed thanks to an $8 million award of BP money from the Gulf Coast Restoration Fund.
Gulfport Town Center will be built on an empty lot at the northwest corner of U.S. 90 and 49, south of Half Shell Oyster House and across the highway from the beach.
The four-story building will have 10,000 square feet of flexible retail and restaurant space, plus 30,000 square feet of office space in potential future phase, topped by apartments.
“We’re in the design and engineering phase now and we’re targeting groundbreaking and commencement of site work by the end of the year,” said Stewart Speed, president of Leaf River Group, the company developing the project.
The $8 million BP award will be used for infrastructure and for a parking garage, with about 200 of the 480 spaces dedicated to the public, Speed said.
He worked with the Coast delegation and the Gulfport Economic Development Authority to help get the grant. With the price of inflation, “We needed it in order to afford today’s construction cost,” he said.
Project details
The company began working on the project two years ago at the start of the pandemic, Speed said. Since then, a lot has changed, such as the cost of building materials and the ability of people to live anywhere and work from home.
With the increased cost of construction, the project was “right sized,” he said, and reduced by 50 units from the original plan. It will have a mix of 200 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments.
The building will feature balconies and views of the city and the water, he said, and have a resident lounge, a courtyard, a resort style pool on top of the parking, a courtyard and a rooftop space where the residents or the public can host catered events.
One of the greatest amenities, he said, is the location — in walking distance to the beach, Mississippi Aquarium, Jones Park, the Gulfport Harbor and the restaurants in downtown.
Why Gulfport?
“It’s one of the most exciting projects we’ve had in quite some time,” Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes said, especially with the downtown apartments that he said will be critical in supporting the blue economy and the professionals that will work in the city.
The Town Center site is adjacent to the historic Gulf & Ship Island Building, the centerpiece facility for the new Gulf Blue initiative. University of Southern Mississippi said the initiative will bring together research scientists, federal agencies, industry partners and entrepreneurs to develop Gulfport and the region as a global leader in ocean- and maritime-related technologies.
Gulfport Town Center is expected to have a $12 million economic impact on the city, supporting 100 jobs and nearly $500,000 in new spending at downtown restaurants and bars, according to an economic report prepared for the developer.
A better place
Since the pandemic, Speed said, “There’s a lot of interest here from people who are moving out of places like California where it’s high cost, New York and Chicago where it’s high crime, and they just want something better. So this comes at the perfect time.”
Similar developments the company has built in Jackson and in Mobile have demonstrated they attract young professionals, he said, and have been a catalyst to bring other businesses to those areas.
Near the company’s Meridian at the Port development, he said, there now is a grocery store, multiple craft breweries and additional apartments and condos catering to the many people he said are wanting to live and work downtown.
A 2019 report done by the Gulf Coast Business Council and Community Foundation shared recommendations for how to best use the BP settlement fund, he said. Among the top priorities were enhancing quality of place along with workforce recruitment, he said.
“They actually called out downtown Gulfport as a really good location,” he said.
Niles Bolton Associates and Eley Guild Hardy are the architects and the Town Center will be built by AnderCorp of Gulfport.
Leaf River Group is based in Jackson and Speed said it is gratifying to be involved in this Coast project along with local partners to create what he said will be among the lead models for development in cities across South Mississippi.
His father, Leland Speed, was executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority under Gov. Haley Barbour and oversaw Gulf Coast recovery after Hurricane Katrina. He died in January 2021.
“He’d be tickled to see to see all of the activity,” his son said.
This story was originally published April 28, 2022 at 5:50 AM.
