Developers pitch 32‑acre mixed‑use project in Montgomery; drainage and zoning questions linger

Montgomery — At a Jan. 27 city council workshop, developers presented plans for a mixed‑use project on a 32‑acre parcel south of the CB Stewart Drive and Buffalo Springs Drive intersection and north of Eva Street, and council members and consultants focused the discussion on unresolved drainage and a likely zoning change for a northern multifamily portion.

James Todd, who identified himself as being with DCS Capital, presented conceptual site plans showing junior‑anchor retail, full‑service and quick‑service restaurants along the front edge, and 14–17 acres of multifamily residential at the northern end. Todd said the fully stabilized build‑out could create roughly $90 million in property value and about $66 million in annual sales in a stabilized year. "We're super excited about this," he told the council.

The project team and a longtime landowner representative said a bigger constraint is stormwater. Philip Lefebvre, who described the history of land planning in the area, told the council a central drainage plan approved previously by the city and county allowed Kroger to develop without on‑site detention, but subsequent detailed engineering for Kroger left insufficient capacity to carry flows from the west. "You can't sell one piece of land just for a pad site because if you do, it's like making the wrong mark on a blank piece of paper. You've ruined the whole thing," Lefebvre said, arguing that roughly 30% of the 32‑acre tract could be unusable for its intended design unless a drainage solution is implemented.

Leslie, an engineer with L Squared Engineering assisting the project, said the firm is updating a drainage model to convey flows from the 32‑acre tract and to account for an adjacent roughly 110‑acre property so the problems tied to the Kroger approvals can be addressed going forward. "We're actually working on updating a drainage model, with conveying the 32 acre flow, seeing what we can do, and also accounting for the 110 acres as well," Leslie said.

Developers said the northern multifamily component is important to the project's economics: without the multifamily zoning the front edge of the site is harder to lease at the rents needed to support the overall development. Todd said one national sporting‑goods chain, Academy, had expressed serious interest in anchoring part of the retail. The developer also described exploratory conversations about a higher‑quality hotel and other uses but said those elements are conceptual.

Council members stressed that the workshop was for discussion only and that no action would be taken. Councilman Stan Donaldson said he had no immediate objections but asked for an indication of the city's posture; Mayor Sarah Countryman and Councilwoman Cheryl Fox emphasized the need to protect neighboring properties and to see drainage handled in a way that would not transfer future liability back to the city or adjacent landowners.

Next steps identified in the workshop included continued engineering work to update the drainage model, coordination on whether detention could be integrated with the pond referenced in the presentation (referred to in the record as Rambi/Rampy Pond), and follow‑up with the city's feasibility report and planning staff on zoning and platting requirements. No zoning change or formal approvals were sought or decided at the meeting.