CHARLES CITY-One of the biggest projects for Charles City County coming up in 2023 is the new Market 5 along Route 5 not far from James City County.
The project is described as “an eclectic public engagement and flexible retail space off John Tyler Memorial Highway and adjacent to the Capital Trail,” according to Rhonda L. Russell, the county’s assistant county administrator and community development director.
Market 5 is in unique in that it will offer retail and restaurant space within large, portable shipping containers.
“We are so excited,” said Russell. “The development of Market 5 is in full swing. The Economic Development Authority is recruiting an economic development and tourism manager to support this and other efforts. Contractors have been engaged via a competitive selection process. The project construction window is approximately six months, and we anticipate a soft opening no later than fall 2023.”
In addition to Market 5, “The county leadership and administration commenced a campaign to diversify the local tax base with a million-dollar property acquisition campaign of strategic parcels in the Ruthville, Courthouse, and Roxbury areas to attract grocery and national retail venues to Charles City County and expand manufacturing uses in the Roxbury area and mixed uses in the courthouse area,” Russell said.
The county is also looking forward to the opening of Fire Station No. 2 off Roxbury Road. That is set to open at the end of 2023.
Charles City County also plans to implement a $20 million broadband project “that will complete the deployment of broadband infrastructure countywide,” Russell said, along with a $30 million project to upgrade water and sewage infrastructure in the Courthouse, Roxbury, and Jerusalem areas.
County officials hope these and other projects will help improve life for its citizens and attract others to the area not only this year but in the coming years. Charles City County is a “thriving community” known as “a destination for those wishing to experience Virginia’s rich colonial history,” Russell said.
“These improvements, funded impart with grant dollars, will facilitate exponential growth in mixed-use, residential, retail, and manufacturing development over the next decade,” she said.
