Multifamily Trends - March/April 2008 - ProjectWatch

Home Sweet Home

Property once owned by the Imperial Sugar Company in Sugar Land, Texas—a town west of Houston that has been the company’s home base since operations began in 1843—is being developed into a 650-acre mixed-use community that incorporates commercial and retail space, as well as single-family homes. Environmental remediation began in March, and construction of the first phase of the project is expected to begin early next year.

Imperial Sugar sold its tract of 170 acres in February 2007 for $7 million to Cherokee Investments Partners, a Raleigh, North Carolina–based private equity firm specializing in the acquisition, remediation, and sustainable redevelopment of brownfield sites. At the time of sale, Cherokee also partnered with the Texas General Land Office, which owned 525 acres of land adjacent to the Imperial site, to combine the properties for development.

In September 2007, Cherokee announced that Southern Land Company LLC, a full-service real estate development firm in Franklin, Tennessee, would conceive, design, and construct the community. Imperial’s headquarters remains in Sugar Land, near the redevelopment site.

The property to be developed includes Imperial’s historic mill, which dates back to the early 1800s; refinery; water tower; and char house, where liquid sugar flowed through massive filters to remove the brown color. The buildings also include numerous artifacts from Imperial Sugar. Flowing through the tract is Oyster Creek, “which has served this community for centuries and is a marvelous natural element,” says Cherokee project leader Kyndel Bennett.

Protecting as many of these historic elements and natural features as possible has been a priority for Cherokee and Southern Land. The project team intends to preserve the char house, including its sign with the company logo, as well as the water tower and a large warehouse. Neighborhood streets will be aligned to maximize views of the creek, a trail system will run parallel to its banks, and a central public park will be situated to encourage residents of all ages to enjoy the outdoor amenities.

Cherokee and Southern Land have worked hand-in-hand with Sugar Land and its residents to define the scope and scale of the new community. “The city leaders and residents of Sugar Land have added a tremendous historic perspective to this project,” says Bennett. This is understandable, given the longstanding ties the city has to the property.

“The Imperial property defines the history of our city,” says city manager Allen Bogard. “It is essential that we preserve as much of our past as we can. Cherokee is giving us time to do a thorough job.”

The city, for example, has contracted with the Fort Bend County Museum Association to retrieve artifacts, photographs, and other archival documents from the offices and outbuildings throughout the Imperial Sugar property; to store them off site; and to conduct a thorough video documentation of the property before site remediation begins.

The city will remain the temporary custodian of these artifacts until the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation is formed. The items will then be given as gifts to the foundation, which will be charged with creating and managing a new museum about Sugar Land somewhere on the Imperial site.

“It is an exciting undertaking,” says Bogard. “We must always have our sights fixed firmly on the future, with an appropriate recognition of our past.”