Story first seen in the Cincinnati Enquirer

The District at Deerfield, a $140 million mixed-use development coming to Deerfield Township, is poised to become the Cincinnati area’s newest mega entertainment district.

The development recently secured seven liquor licenses from the State of Ohio that have been set aside exclusively for future tenants, according to Blue Ash-based developer, Silverman & Co. Inc.

The liquor licenses for beer, wine and spirits will be available at cost directly from the state, eliminating one of the biggest barriers to entry for the locally owned restaurants and entertainment venues the development hopes to attract.

“Being able to get a liquor license for about $2,400 is a huge cost savings when it could cost 30, 40 even 50 grand on the open market,” said Joshua Rothstein, a retail specialist with Blue Ash-based OnSite Retail Group – the development’s retail leasing agent.

“We just recently kicked off pre-leasing, but we’ve already had a lot of interest from local and regional operators ” Rothstein said.

The development, first announced in early 2017, will encompass about 28 acres between Mason-Montgomery Road and Wilkens Boulevard, just south of Deerfield Towne Center in Mason.

Roadway improvements are expected to begin in the next 30 to 60 days, extending Parkway Drive through the development to connect Mason-Montgomery to Wilkens, said Ryan Silverman, vice president at Silverman & Co.

The first phase of construction is expected to begin this spring, including 242 high-end apartments in four, four-story buildings just north of Parkway.

But the centerpiece of the development will be a public square surrounded by green space, 95,000 square feet of street-level retail space with 120 loft-style apartments overhead, plus a hotel, Silverman said.

By comparison, The Streets of West Chester includes more than 167,000 square feet of retail, entertaining and dining space.

“This is truly a public-private partnerhsip,” Silverman said. “The square will be owned by the local government and will have consistent offerings of community events and gatherings open to the public.

“Our vision is to create a downtown district for Deerfield Township,” he said. “We want to create a vibrant atmosphere with a lot of community buy-in, and emphasize the experience.”

The second phase of construction, which will include the public square, is expected to break ground in early 2019.