STARKVILLE — The empty husk of Vowell’s Marketplace has sat empty since November on the top of the hill looming over Highway 12 amid a hub of activity.
44 Properties, managed by retired Major League pitcher Roy Oswalt, purchased the 60,000 square-foot retail space and is looking to revamp it to hold three stores, according to computer generated renditions presented to the board of aldermen on Tuesday.
The development will include a Corner Market, an Ace Hardware and a third unnamed store. Corner Market is a Mississippi-owned and Hattiesburg-based family grocery store that offers options such as an olive bar, gourmet cheeses and typical grocery store items. It is owned by the Roberts Company, which is known for its Mississippi grocery chain, Sunflower Market.
The new grocery store will have a deli, bakery, fresh seafood, a meat department and specialty foods for people with dietary restrictions. The Starkville location will mark its first venture north of Jackson, according to the map on the website.
The Corner Market and two other stores will replace Vowell’s, which had occupied the space for seven years before November 2021. Vowell’s took over the spot from Piggly Wiggly.
City Planner Daniel Havelin and architect Thomas Stewart of Architectonics discussed the project publicly when they asked Tuesday for two variances for the building — a request to deviate from the facade and to deviate from the stormwater requirements.
Work has begun at the site, but city officials did not know a timeline for completion. Stewart did not mention one at Tuesday’s meeting, and The Dispatch could not reach him by press time.
The original building was completed in 1992, and with the new renovations they are decreasing the impervious surfaces (asphalt parking lot) by about 4 percent. New landscape areas will be added to the front and sides of the building.
Despite cutting into the parking lot area, Havelin assures there will be enough parking for the businesses going into the building as well as overflow parking for the businesses to the west of the renovations.
Ward 5 Alderman Hamp Beatty asked about an underground drainage system in the area, but Havelin said when the space was built, the stormwater variance did not exist, so no storm drains were put in.
“Back in (1992), there was no underground stormwater system,” Havelin said. “I believe it is all surface drainage to the ditch that is on the east side between the hotel and Cookout. I don’t believe there are any underground drainage systems… which is kind of the burden they are seeking a variance for.”
A question was posed about if there were any flooding issues in that area as there is no underground stormwater drainage system, and city engineer Edward Kemp said there are none in that area.
The variance for the facade of the building comes from the front being renovated while the back of the building will only be painted over due to cost. The front and sides will not match the existing back of the building in material.
“You can see in the images pretty drastic changes in the facade to the side of the building,” Havelin said. “However, the size of the rear which is currently painted cinder block, they are proposing just to paint over that to match the color. Due to the square footage of the back of the building, it would be very expensive to go back and change to brick or some other facade material.”
The board unanimously approved both variances for the renovations.
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