Renovation efforts are underway to turn two historic structures into mixed-use space facing out on South Montgomery Street in downtown Starkville.
The buildings - also positioned at the corner of Lampkin Street next door to the Starkville Daily News - date back to the 1950s.
The Jackson Square development will see the north building on the property divided into three retail condos, with the possibility of four stories of residential space being added later. The south building will be restaurant space, with half already spoken for by King’s Craft Butcher, an artisan butcher shop. A courtyard with a fire fountain will link the buildings. The courtyard will be oriented westward to emphasize sunsets.
Project cost is around $2.5 million, with costs expected to be closer to $10 million if the residential space is added.
“It’s going to add restaurant and retail space with parking on-site downtown, as well as renovating two existing buildings,” said developer Johnny Arnold. “The third (residential) phase will set the skyline for downtown."
The project is a joint venture between GM Realty Associates in Nyack, New York and TAG Investments. Project architects are Bill Mann and Ashley Bankston. The project group acquired the buildings in 2015, closed on both in November 2016 and began demolition work in February of this year.
Arnold said he hoped to finish the project as soon as possible, and that differences with the city over interpretation of building codes had caused some delays.