BackFrom today’s Daily Journal, if you missed it:
A new retail development in Tupelo is closer to reality.
Justin Davis is developing a site at the busy Barnes Crossing Road and North Gloster Street intersection, which has been a much-talked about location. The opening of the northern loop – officially called West Barnes Crossing Road – which connects Barnes Crossing Road to west Tupelo, has fueled speculation that a large retail development is in the works.
Davis confirmed there is a development, but it’s not as large as many hope.
Tupelo Crossroads covers about four acres at the southwest corner of the Barnes Crossing/North Gloster intersection. The preliminary site plan has two buildings on the property, and some of the land is pegged for future development.
Available spaces range from 2,500 square feet to 3,500 square feet and parcels available range from 1.02 to 1.16 acres.
“There’s tremendous demand for retail space for the right site,” Davis said.
That “right site,” Davis believes, is Tupelo Crossroads.
The Shopping Center Group of Atlanta is helping to market Tupelo Crossroads. The company was founded in 1984 and has offices in 22 cities across the country.
It has several developments and properties in Northeast Mississippi, including Booneville, Corinth, Oxford, Starkville and West Point.
Davis said there has been much interest in Tupelo Crossroads, but declined to name them.
“Some national retailers have been looking at the market,” he said, adding that consumers will be pleased with their arrival.
Given the relatively small size of the development, a large big-box retailer is not in the works.
And that means Target is not in the mix of tenants.
“The market has changed; everyone is doing two- or three-acre developments at a time, not the 10-acre developments,” Davis said.
Davis hopes to have the stores open by next summer.
Some final details must be addressed before then, however, namely working with the city and the Mississippi Department of Transportation to gain better access to the site.