A massive redevelopment project years in the making moved one step closer to reality this week, and the public got a closer look at what the final product might look like.
West Columbia City Council on Tuesday approved rezoning for the Colite City project, allowing the 10-acre former industrial facility in the heart of the city to transition to a high-visibility mixed-use hub.
The change ushers in an eight-year phased development planned for the 3-block site bordered by North Brown, Shull, Senn and Meeting streets. That’s between Augusta Road and Jarvis Klapman Boulevard, a few blocks from the Triangle City area and located behind the 12th Street Plaza shopping center.
Plans call for the former world headquarters of the sign-making company Colite, now vacant for almost 20 years, into 46 residential apartments, plus retail, office space, restaurants and other hospitality suites, according to documents submitted for review to the city.
The final project will be 70% residential and 30% commercial, the documents show. But the initial phase approved this week will have 100,000 square feet of commercial space to 50,000 square feet of residential.
“The vision for Phases 2 and 3 of Colite City allows compact residential single family living on the periphery of the development and more dense residential (townhomes, condos, mixed-use) closer to the center to encourage foot traffic and public safety throughout the site,” according to the submission.
The plan calls for 267 parking spaces dedicated to the site, including 39 on-street parking spaces along Meeting, Senn and Shull, plus 40 off-street parking spaces reserved for tenants. “(T)he remaining 188 parking spaces will be located on Parcel 3 but allocated for the exclusive use of the Phase I tenants and customers.”
A city staffer told a city council meeting on Tuesday that the developer needed approval from the state Department of Transportation for its parking plans along the street right-of-way. The proposal for rezoning passed unanimously.
Plans to redevelop the site were originally announced in 2022. City council members were told this week that $29.5 million in financing and equity is currently lined up behind the project, and West Columbia leaders have expressed hope the new development will attract new residents and investment into an area that was formerly oriented toward the old Colite plant.
The first phase of development will take 24 months to complete, the documents say, with a planned finish toward the end of 2028. Phase 2 will begin in mid-2029 and the final Phase 3 is set to begin in 2031.
The first phase will feature on an old warehouse that would be converted into a 55,000-square-foot second floor convention center space.
The developer anticipates that before Phase 2 of the project, a section of North Parsons Street that runs through the middle of the development site will be closed and converted to a pedestrian walkway and park, which can also be used as a dining and gathering space.
A hangar-sized building on an adjoining parcel will be the focus of development for Phase 2. “Our plan is to maximize the number of permanent establishments that would operate within the space, while also allowing flex space for events and functions,” the developer says in planning documents. “Also located in Parcel B is one historic warehouse and one office building, both sizable, with considerable opportunity for a boutique hotel, ground level retail, new urban style condominiums or mixed-use office units.”
The final parcel “will primarily be used for parking and residential purposes but could also be converted into high-density units as existing inventory is developed and demand is warranted,” the plans say.