You thought the town of Parker was already amazing? Well, you were right, but listen to this, we are finally moving forward with what’s known as the My Mainstreet Project!
My Mainstreet Project Approved
On November 7th, the Parker Town Council, along with The P3 Board approved a $275 million dollar development. The agreement is with confluence companies. This is a public/private investment, and it is the largest economic development in Downtown Parker’s history.
Project History
Let’s back up a bit. Did you know that Parker has what’s called an Urban Renewal Agency? Well, we do! It’s called Partnering for Parker’s Progress, which is kind of a mouthful, so we call it P3 instead. P3 is an organization that works to enhance Parker and we do it through collaboration and investment in the community. It brings together developers, residents, and local government to encourage projects that improve the community.
There are six publicly owned land parcels in the downtown area, and they’ve been sitting vacant for what seems like forever, and this is for several different reasons. Not all progress is popular with some residents and there was some controversy about keeping these sites vacant or developing some of them as parks or open space.
P3 and the Town of Parker originally purchased these sites for future commercial development as they were hoping to eliminate what we call “blight” and accelerate re-development of the underutilized and vacant parcels in the core of Downtown Parker. The hope was also to promote development that would expand Downtown Parker and would continue “the right growth” as a vibrant and active downtown, for years to come.
Project Research and Working Together – Parker’s Near Future
Very specific research was conducted because these lots are so special and critical to the future of Parker. This is why it’s such a big deal for our town! It’s been in the works for decades.
The Town of Parker and P3 will be working closely with confluence companies to create a new future for Downtown Parker. Each My Mainstreet Project parcel will have a unique design that continues Parker’s vision of a more vibrant and walkable downtown. The different designs will promote an energy on Mainstreet with a commitment to making the area a destination, not only for residents, but for people who work here, the surrounding areas, and tourists.
Some of the new amenities we’re hoping for in the coming years are more restaurants, retail and residential options, as well as office space. Do you know, as of today at least, historic Downtown Parker has zero vacancies, so if you want office space on Mainstreet, you may have to wait until this is developed.
My Mainstreet Project Development History
A lot of people think this project was approved overnight. That just isn’t true and here’s a high-level view of a timeline for this project:
- In June of 2012, Town Council approved a Master Plan for the Town of Parker
- In 2014, the Master Plan was adopted as a policy document
- In 2015, the Mainstreet Master Plan was included in the town’s Master Plan
- In March of 2018, the My Mainstreet Project was initiated
- In December of 2018, the Master Plan was updated
As you can see, this project has been in the works for years. There’s also been some talk that it all happened behind closed doors, in a vacuum without any public input, well, that isn’t true either. There were in person sessions, community events and online engagement-through Let’s Talk Parker, which lasted for almost a year.
Planning this project didn’t happen overnight, and unfortunately, the continuing development will take some time as the project will be completed in phases. I’ll be sure to keep you up to date on this exciting development as more information is available.
Moving Forward
For details on both the results of your input from the surveys and future plans for the project, please visit P3’s website.
Beginning Tuesday, February 7th, I invite you to tune in for a two-part conversation with three prominent Parker business owners. You can learn more about their businesses and also hear some of their thoughts on My Mainstreet Project.
You can find my weekly Parker is My Town episodes on my YouTube Channel or on my real estate blog.
I’ll look forward to seeing you next week on Parker is My Town!
