All Clear Sounds for $150M Project Start

The planned urban development overlay zoning will provide Deerwood Development with flexibility on the $150-million project. The development site is located along FM 518 and close to Interstate 45, about halfway between Houston and Galveston. The zoning will allow 30,000 sf of retail space, 34,000 sf for restaurants, 280,000 sf of office product, an 80,000-sf hotel and 48,000 sf of dense residential development on top of the commercial components. The overlay zoning also allows development of an entertainment pavilion and parking garage.

Darell Schmidt, president of Deerwood Development, says the components can be increased under the entitlement agreement--without securing additional OK's from city council. "We can either do less or build up to 15% more," he says.

RiverBend was originally scheduled to begin construction in late 2005. "Now that we have the overlay, we're preparing our final engineering documents so we can break ground, probably later this year," he tells GlobeSt.com. He says the proposal will go out for bid as soon as possible.

Deerwood Development also is in the process of finalizing its pricing for the property. Some plots already have hit the market. Schmidt says prices, based on size and location, will vary from $6 per sf to $9.50 per sf. While nothing is under contract at this time, Schmidt says many builders and developers have shown strong interest in the project.