PHENIX CITY, AL (WTVM) – City leaders in Phenix City are expecting to pour millions of dollars in their area over the next year.
The city recently signed a contract not to exceed $50,000 with Retail Strategies LLC, a nationwide retail recruiting company. The company is expected to go to trade shows across the country to pitch Phenix City to national and international businesses.
“We will within the next year have $50 to $60 million in development – new retail development,” said Mayor Eddie Lowe.
It’s a bold statement from the Phenix City mayor as the city says they are embarking on scoring new retail for the area.
Construction on a grocery store project along Highway 431 south is finally rolling forward after citizens were wondering if it was ever going to happen.
The Villages at Crosswinds is centered around Renfroe’s Market, a Montgomery-based grocery store. The development will cover 22 acres.
“I challenge people to look at all the positives. We can have disagreements, but at the end of the day, let’s look at all the positives because at the end of the day, we have to be there for one another,” said Lowe.
City officials said Burger King and McDonald’s have also purchased land in the Highway 431 south area, but no word on when a storefront will be in the works.
The new development doesn’t end at the south side of town.
A shopping center on U.S. Highway 280 just in front of Walmart is expecting a Moe’s Southwestern Grill and T-Mobile phone store to add to the Aspen Dental that has already set up shop.
Finally, the newest announcement just down the road, still on Highway 280, is a multi-acreage project expected to bring in a number of new storefronts. This area sits on land between Waffle House and McDonald’s.
“I think it’s great that we are going to have new development around here because we need more things for the elderly people and the younger people to do to keep the growth in Phenix City,” said Phenix City local Charlotte Dunn.
The city said growth is not only catered to retail. They expect by the end of this year to have 20 to 30 percent more homes built in one year than in the last three years.
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