READY TO RISE: AMBITIOUS DOWNTOWN PROJECT OFFERS RETAIL, CONDOS JAIME GATTON Mooresville Tribune Wednesday, June 15, 2005 It’s been a while in the making, but a planned four-story residential/retail project in downtown Mooresville is ready to rise. Now the question is: Will it? Cornerstone Real Estate Development LLC announced this week its final plans for a 50,000-square foot, mixed-use project – called 100 North Church Street – at the corner of Church Street and Center Avenue. Tom Kilroe, president of Thomas John Development and a Cornerstone partner, describes the project as “a breath of fresh air,” saying, “100 North Church is the perfect blend of big city, urban loft glitz with a warm and personable small town environment.” He says, “America is embracing more and more the mixture of residential and retail.” But is Mooresville ready for it? That’s the question on which the entire project will hinge, Kilroe says. “The rubber is hitting the road right now; it will fly or fail.” Before putting shovels in the ground, Cornerstone is asking people interested in purchasing a condominium at 100 North Church Street to pay a $1,000 refundable deposit. It’s a way the developers can gauge public interest in the current plan, or if the proposed project needs a little tweaking. The plans for the three uppermost floors call for 18 two-bedroom, two-bath condominiums, each ranging from 1,500 square feet to more than 2,000 square feet in size. Estimated cost: from $350,000 to $499,000, Kilroe said. The units are designed around a four-story open atrium with a skylight and an interior fountain at the lobby level. A multi-storied work of art on one wall of the atrium would be viewable from a glass elevator running from the private gated parking garage in the lower level to the walkways of each floor. Each unit is projected to have its own private exterior balcony, 12-foot ceilings, 42-inch kitchen wall cabinets, solid surface countertops, separate tub and shower in the master bath, a large utility room for laundry and storage, and two reserved spaces in the parking garage. On the ground floor: 9,300 square feet of retail space for purchase. Three shops will contain approximately 1,500 square feet each, and one 4,700 square foot space is intended for an upscale restaurant. Kilroe’s Cornerstone partner, Bruce Guild, says, “We believe 100 North Church addresses the market request for urban living but with ample room and amenities. The homes … will have access to the owner’s terrace, an outdoor formal garden sanctuary at the second-floor level, complete with fountains, summer kitchen grill, fireplace, shrubbery and bountiful floral elements. “Living space is much more generous here than what you would typically find in the Charlotte market.” 100 North Church Street, adds Kilroe, “is designed to provide owners a tranquil oasis within a richly textured historic neighborhood of energized entrepreneurs pioneering the redevelopment of their community.” Arguably one of Mooresville’s strongest proponents for downtown revitalization, Kilroe supports and promotes “new urbanism,” or blending the “old” with the “new.” An example of that is 100 North Church Street, he says. It will feature “all the modern amenities we’ve become accustomed to, but it’s surrounded by historical buildings. It will have a big, urban, loft feel with Southern, small-town hospitality,” Kilroe says. His original plans for the Cornerstone project included a private-public partnership with the Town of Mooresville. He offered a portion of his land, plus $300,000, for the town to build a downtown parking deck, in exchange for reserved spaces for Cornerstone tenants. The town borrowed $1.6 million in late 2003 to build the deck, but was told a year later the actual cost would likely top $4.3 million. Town commissioners later informally decided to scrap the idea of a public-private venture with Cornerstone to instead study available downtown surface parking and research a future parking deck closer to the Charles Mack Citizen Center. Kilroe said he had to adjust his plans several times over the three years that the town debated the parking deck idea. But with new plans in hand this week, he says, “That’s all water under the bridge. We can’t do anything but move forward now.”