Officials with the City of Gainesville hosted a groundbreaking ceremony this morning on the Solis Gainesville project.
This approximately 10,000 square foot mixed use development will occupy the 6.8 acres of vacant land on the south side of the pedestrian bridge across Jesse Jewell Parkway.
Once completed, the project will include space for restaurants and more than 220 residential units.
“We think it’s gonna be great for Brenau, think it’s gonna be great for the graduate medical program, it’s great for the young adults that live in our community that want this urban-type environment, that direct connection to downtown,” said Gainesville City Manager Bryan Lackey.
The site has sat undeveloped for several years after a private attempt to develop the land fell through, prompting many in the community to refer to the bridge as the “bridge to nowhere”.
However, the City of Gainesville council announced their partnership last year with Atlanta-based firm Terwilliger Pappas to finally develop the property.
“I’d just like to take a moment to tell the nay-sayers ‘I told you so’,” said Gainesville Mayor Danny Dunagan at today’s ceremony. “The bridge to nowhere will soon be a bridge to somewhere and what a somewhere it will be.”
Lackey said that officials expect the project to be completed in 2022.
