Welcome to the neighborhood: Groundbreaking held for Renaissance Plaza on Broad Street

Michael E. Pierce, executive director of the MLK Avenue Redevelopment Corp., stands beside an artist's rendering of Renaissance Plaza immediately following a ground breaking at the site off Broad Street July 22, 2013. Pierce said residents should be pleased when the anchor store for the development is finally announced.

MOBILE, Alabama -- As murky gray clouds gathered above downtown Mobile, city and business leaders converged on a patch of grass off Broad Street Monday, July 22, 2013, to officially break ground on a retail development complex that will be named Renaissance Plaza, organizers said.

A bit of mystery surrounded the mid-morning event, as city planners wouldn't reveal the name of an anchor store for the new business. "I think everybody is going to be pleasantly surprised," said Michael E. Pierce, who serves as executive director of the MLK Avenue Redevelopment Corp.

The Broad Street retail center, located at 350 Broad St., will be a $2.5 million, 13,750 square foot retail space with 10 bays, serving as a focal point for residents of the MLK Avenue and downtown Mobile, city officials said.

In addition to providing basic conveniences common to most urban neighborhoods, the center is expected to enhance the Broad Street corridor, create employment opportunities for area residents, be a catalyst for future commercial development and generate a continuous stream of sales and property tax revenues. An estimated 60 jobs should be created when all the business are up and running, Pierce said.

Participating in the groundbreaking were Ann Bedsole with the Sybil H. Smith Charitable Trust, Christopher L. Lee with the J.L. Bedsole Foundation, City of Mobile Mayor Sam Jones and Pierce, among others. 

Construction of the retail center is expected to begin in early August, Pierce said, noting that it is expected to take about six months for the project to be completed.

Martha Peek, superintendent for the 62,000-student Mobile County Public School System, was among those who braved the rain to celebrate the new business: "This will be good for the community."