“Construction on The Grandstand, a commercial and residential tower in the city’s Fairpark District, has been going on for months, but company, city and county officials finally gathered for a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday.
Colin Maloney, president of Century Construction, which designed and is building the tower, said the project is on schedule to be finished by early summer.
“It’s an exciting project to be a part of,” Maloney said. “I took part in the first demolition of all this, and it’s great to be building something that makes this project come true.”
“Anytime you bring more people and more projects, it’s a good thing,” he said. Maloney said he’s invested some $24 million so far and isn’t through yet.
“We hope to make another announcement soon about something we’ve been working on,” he said.
The various projects are what city leaders envisioned more than two decades ago. In 1998, the city approved nearly $23 million in bonds to redevelop the old Tupelo Fairgrounds in the middle of downtown Tupelo. Today, more than $170 million in private capital investment has been made in the downtown area.
“It’s been money well spent,” said Debbie Brangenberg, executive director of the Downtown Tupelo Main Street Association. “I’m overwhelmed, especially with life the way it is, but we’ve been able to maintain the momentum that’s gone on though COVID and everything. We’ve worked hard for these projects, with many years put into it. You have to persevere and be in it for the long haul and be flexible. I think we’ve had a great team putting these projects, and it also takes great partnerships and cooperation.”
Occupying the first floor of the The Grandstand will be a children’s clinic resulting from the merger of the Children’s Clinic-Tupelo and Children’s Clinic-Saltillo.
The 15,476-square-foot clinic will feature 27 exam rooms, each outfitted with infant scales, as well as private breastfeeding rooms for nursing mothers. Plans call for separate waiting areas for sick and well visits. The new clinic will also include a laboratory, procedure room and vision and hearing screening rooms.
The Grandstand will be approximately 64,000 square feet and include 47 luxury apartments, including studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units, ranging from 583 square feet to 1,319 square feet.
“We’ve got upper floor housing with this, and I hear from a lot of people who want to live downtown,” Brangenberg said.
Maloney said he’s received much interest in the apartments.
Residents will have access to a fitness center, private elevators on both ends of the building and trash chutes. All apartments, except studios, will have private balconies and rooftop access.
“With this project and housing phase IV in Fairpark, I think you’re going to see a boom in the next few years again downtown,” Brangenberg said.
*Article taken from the Tupelo Daily Journal