The fast-growing Mississippi Gulf Coast has much to tout. Biloxi, a city of more than 53,000 people, boasts casinos, beaches and one of the largest Air Force bases in the country. Gulfport, the largest city on the Gulf Coast, is just west of Biloxi and has a population of 80,000. The Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula MSA population is estimated at 369,447 and is expected to surpass 470,000 residents by 2005. Harrison County remains the population center with more than 190,000 residents. The Mississippi Coast economy is driven by five key growth areas: gaming/tourism, manufacturing/distribution, military/federal installations, retail trade and transportation. There are 11 casinos in Gulfport and Biloxi, with more than 15,000 hotel rooms to support a booming tourist industry.

The dominant retail centers in the area are Edgewater Mall in Biloxi, Singing River Mall in Gautier and Prime Outlets at Gulfport. There are six Wal-Mart Supercenters along the Gulf Coast. However, developers are having difficulty with efforts to rezone the President Broadwater Golf Course in Biloxi, where they propose building a Wal-Mart Supercenter, a home improvement center and several restaurants. The city council has rejected the developer’s offer to donate a redesigned 18-hole course, which came after an offer to build an east-west connector road and donate land for a city park. West Biloxi residents oppose the project due to concerns about traffic and the loss of the golf course.

Downtown Biloxi will likely see revitalization due to the exit of the federal courthouse to Gulfport and the future departure of the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art to a new location near Casino Row. An open-air walkway over U.S. 90 is proposed with the hope of creating an entertainment district similar to the entertainment district in Mobile, Alabama, with apartments, restaurants and retail. U.S. 90 currently functions as a wall between downtown and the Beau Rivage Casino district. The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi is scheduled to open third quarter 2005. The $235 million casino, the first new resort to open on the Coast since 1999, will be built on the site of the former Gold Shore Casino, just east of Beau Rivage.

Residential growth north of Interstate 10 and the widening of Mississippi 15 are prompting commercial growth north of Biloxi in D’Iberville, one of the fastest growing cities in the state. Lakeview Village, built 3 years ago at the intersection of I-10 and I-110, is now one of south Mississippi’s busiest shopping centers. The 150-acre retail development attracted Wal-Mart Supercenter and Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse. Construction will begin soon on a 14-screen stadium seating theater and eight restaurant sites to be located just east of Lamey Bridge Road.

While Louisiana developer Butch Ward recently pulled his request to develop a shopping center on 1,342 acres he owns between U.S. 49 and Canal Road in Gulfport, he is not likely to pull out of the project completely. However, problems with wetlands and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regulations will have to be factored into future development proposals. Developers along the Gulf Coast must balance environmental concerns such as storm water management, wetland creation and protection of endangered species. Land in Mississippi’s three southernmost counties is becoming available for development as large paper manufacturers divest themselves of up to 200,000 acres of forested land. This land will soon become subdivisions and shopping centers to support the booming coast, where the population is exploding.

Singing River Mall recently sold for an undisclosed amount to Singing River LLC, a partnership headed by Lee Brumfield of Ocean Springs. The 571,000-square-foot, single-level mall, anchored by McRae’s, JC Penney and Sears, was formerly owned by John Hancock Life Insurance of Boston. Victory Development, the new management group, will be involved in transforming the center into an entertainment and shopping destination. The mall, considered a major component of the Gautier economy, had been on the market for more than a year and was 80 percent occupied at the time of sale.

In March 2003, Developers Diversified Realty acquired Crossroads Center, a 540,000-square-foot center located at the intersection of I-10 and Highway 49 in Gulfport, for approximately $45.5 million from a private investor. The center is anchored by Belk, a 16-screen Cinemark Theater, Circuit City, T.J. Maxx, Office Depot, Barnes & Noble, Academy Sports, PetsMart, Kirchman’s Furniture, Bed Bath & Beyond and Goody’s.

— Lynn Leonard, vice president of marketing, NewBridge Retail Advisors

©2004 France Publications, Inc. Duplication or reproduction of this article not permitted without authorization from France Publications, Inc. For information on reprints of this article contact Barbara Sherer at (630) 554-6054.