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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowA former concrete plant on Westfield’s west side is one step closer to becoming part of State Road 32’s newest commercial stretch.
The Westfield City Council on Monday approved up to $1,525,000 in tax increment finance-backed bonds for a planned 57-acre redevelopment project on the northeast corner of Spring Mill Road and SR 32. The project, called Spring Mill Centre, aims to bring retail, industrial and office space—and possibly an assisted-living center for seniors—to the site.
Randy Zentz, of Westfield-based Zentz Consulting LLC, is the project’s development consultant. He said Shelby Materials first purchased the former FabCon Precast facility at 17701 Spring Mill Road in 2009 to reuse it as a ready-mix concrete plant.
“But it wasn’t really the city’s desire to have that kind of use on the corner,” Zentz said.
After consulting with city officials, Shelby Materials agreed to relocate five miles west to a 10-acre site at 18050 Mule Barn Road, Zentz said. The company’s owners then formed Haehl Group to demolish the former FabCon facility to make way for a commercial development.
“Since we invested more money and time and effort, it was understood that the TIF (tax increment financing) was something that could be used to help us with that,” Zentz said.
Haehl Group received approval last year to rezone the property with three districts.
The southernmost area near the intersection has been zoned for retail, restaurants or other businesses. The center of the site features zoning for similar uses, as well as offices. Finally, the northernmost portion of the site could be developed as industrial or an assisted-living facility.
Though no tenants have been identified and there are no approved site plans, Zentz said he’s fielded a “good amount of inquiries for all three sectors.” He said he’s encouraged there will be continued interest as the planned Meijer store and associated gas station are built on the other side of State Road 32.
“That will just make this a goldmine for retailers,” Zentz said.
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And here we go again…everytime some developer with no website and no track record announces a potential development project in Hamilton County, especially in Westfield, they always seem to throw in an assisted living facility as if there is some huge need up there and all of the other similar facilities built in Hamilton County the last few years are bursting at the seams… If half of these projects ever happened then there would be more assisted living facilities in Westfield than in all of Florida! These guys need to take an Economics 101 course to understand the basics of supply and demand…