By Thomas Sellers Jr.
In front of more than 100 attendees to the monthly Millington Area Chamber of Commerce Luncheon on Aug. 19 at the River of Life Church located at 8850 Highway 51 North, Millington City Manager Frankie Dakin made a major announcement. He told the audience the projected plans for a new retail development featuring Target and Academy Sports. The site is on Wilkinsville Road east of Highway 51, just south of a Lowe’s Home Improvement store. Dakin said the development encompasses about 200,000 square feet of space.
State’s largest VA Outpatient Clinic, the Big Creek Resilience Park, Target/Academy…all big projects in various stages of the pipeline in our community.
From The City Manager:
But what’s next?
The announcement of Target has folks excited, and naturally the question becomes “what’s next?” Many want to see more family and entertainment options, along with places for seniors to retire comfortably.
I do too.
Thats why I’m proud to report that the Board of Mayor and Aldermen have pushed for reform that can help us get there.
For background, our city invests in the infrastructure that makes development possible, from utilities and roads to education and public safety. The City of Millington has done that, which is why we see growth.
Developers decide what to build, and the Industrial Development Board is the public arm responsible for trying to bring the right developers to the table and deploying the right tools to deliver what our community wants.
In Millington, our Industrial Development Board is unique in that it owns hundreds of acres of currently vacant property. They have done fine when projects come to them, but our community expects more than just fine.
That is why we have pushed for reform. Our proposal would better align the IDB with the public interest, reduce wasteful spending, and unleash their Board’s authority to get laser focused on projects that matter most to Millington. It would also streamline processes for folks who want to develop and keep all current projects on track.
The proposal (Resolutions attached for reference) is awaiting consideration by the IDB and we’re ready to act when they are.
In this moment, we need all of our tools sharpened, and I look forward to working with the IDB to get this across the finish line so we can get to “what’s next?”
