Site preparation has finally begun on what will eventually become the Montecillo Town Center, part of the 292-acre Montecillo SmartCode development on El Paso’s West Side. Crews are clearing the way for the development’s “Entertainment District” which will house the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater that was announced as the first tenant earlier this year.
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| Construction machinery is helping to clear and level the site of the future Montecillo Town Center. The Alamo Drafthouse theater will be located here. |
The property is currently a valley between two hills with relatively steep slopes on the eastern side of Mesa Street across from the Venue at Montecillo’s two northernmost apartment buildings. Parts of the property will be levelled to make construction of buildings more viable.
According to the Town Center’s leasing package, the project will add 37,000 square feet of big box retail, 80,000 square feet of “street” retail, and 56,200 square feet of commercial space. The move theater will consist of a 31,100 square foot building with 910 seats.
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| The View at Montecillo will offer housing options for seniors in El Paso. The 150-unit structure is under construction on El Paso’s west side. |
There are 99 residential units planned for the site which will be incorporated into mixed-use buildings. And 1,165 parking spaces will be spread out among surface lots, parking structures, and on-street parking.
The layout of the Town Center is a general grid pattern, though the sloping property will also have a curving drive that will take vehicles to the theater and to future neighborhoods to the east. Most of the street retail will surround or be located near a central plaza area.
No cost or timeline has been disclosed for the Town Center project, though Alamo Drafthouse has a tentative opening date in 2014.
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| Two buildings that are part of the Santi Dwellings project are under construction at the Montecillo development. |
On the other side of Mesa Street, work continues on three Montecillo projects. The first, called The View at Montecillo, is nearing completion. The four-level structure, initially called The Retreat, will offer housing to active seniors in approximately 150 units.
Across the street, the multi-building Santi at Montecillo apartment complex has made notable progress. Santi will be a mix of “upscale” condo units and retail spaces. At least four buildings are now under construction at the site, though it is unclear if all four are part of the Santi complex.
Closer to Mesa Street, the TI:ME at Montecillo “non-traditional” restaurant and shopping center is also clearly making progress at the corner of Mesa Street and Montecillo Drive. The project, developed by the owners of Crave Kitchen and Bar and The Independent Burger, will open two new restaurants and a coffee shop at the site.
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| TI:ME at Montecillo continues to take shape at the Montecillo development on El Paso’s West Side. This section may house a coffee shop and a restaurant, according to the project’s site plan. |
Retail space is also available for lease at TI:ME with multiple tenants already announced for the center. Part of the “non-traditional” center has been constructed using re-purposed shipping containers. No opening date has been disclosed for the center.
Up Next, More Housing
Montecillo’s developers have recently submitted plans to the City Plan Commission which may indicate more housing is on the way. The first, a 15.75-acre portion on the northern edge of the development, will bring 62 residential lots to the development.
The area has a T3 SmartCode overlay which translates to a “Sub-Urban Zone.” This may create lower-density housing than what the public has seen thus far for Montecillo. Also included will be a four-acre park and a quarter-acre for an undisclosed civic building.
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| Two areas to the west of current construction at Montecillo may be next in line for development. The first (1) is a 15.75-acre site and the second (2) is a 25.5-acre site. (Outlines are approximations.) |
And closer to the ongoing construction, a 25.5-acre portion of land will see construction of 64 mixed-use lots. Fifty-eight parcels are designated as residential with another seven to see multi-family, retail, or office development. This section of Montecillo has a T4O SmartCode overlay which requires “General Urban Zone” density.
This area may contain the majority of higher-density single family home construction for Montecillo and may include town homes. Also included in the property will be a 0.781-acre park and a 0.2-acre civic space.
No timeline has been disclosed for either of the newer projects. EPT Land Communities of El Paso is development the Montecillo SmartCode development.