Mike Wolanin | The Republic An exterior NexusPark in Columbus, Ind., Wednesday, May 28, 2025.
COLUMBUS, Ind. — City officials gave approval to grant nearly $400,000 in funding to go towards building out two new retail tenant spaces at NexusPark.
The Columbus Redevelopment Commission agreed to use up to $395,000 of tax increment financing (TIF) dollars to build out two retail tenant spaces on the northeast side of the facility near Carlos Pizza. Mark Jones, director of Columbus Parks and Recreation, was at the meeting on behalf of the NexusPark Community Development Corporation (NPCDC), which oversees the retail spaces.
The two spots where the tenant spaces will be currently have dirt floors. Jones said they received a quote that landed at $394,242 to develop the spaces in order to produce additional retail income. Each space will have a vanilla box, which Jones said includes basic furnishings that are ready to be customized off the bat.
The work will involve “the core elements of the area’s structure” like utilities, a bathroom and fire suppression system, Jones told the commission.
The TIF funding will come from the Midtown Allocation Area, which started the year with a $2.6 million balance and is projected to end 2025 with just over $550,000, according to city documents.
When asked when the new spaces will be complete, Jones said he didn’t know the exact timeline but estimated they’d be available for leasing late in the summer.
Veritas Realty manages retail tenant spaces at NexusPark and the couple additions brings the total to 19 spaces. There are 13 tenant spaces leased and under contract and just one vacant. Veritas is in the process of filling three other spaces, according to Jones.
Mother Bear’s pizza takes up three of the tenant spaces. Other occupied retail spaces include: Dirty Dough, Creative Eyes, Winnie’s Tea Bar, Valhalla Arcade, Lucas Bros Burgers, Sophea Nail Salon and Riviera Maya.
— This story was updated at 10:06 a.m. Thursday with corrections.
ORIGINAL STORY
City officials gave approval to grant nearly $400,000 in funding to go towards building out two new retail tenant spaces at NexusPark.
The Columbus Redevelopment Commission agreed to use up to $395,000 of tax increment financing (TIF) dollars to build out two retail tenant spaces on the northeast side of the facility near Carlos Pizza. Mark Jones, director of Columbus Parks and Recreation, was at the meeting on behalf of the NexusPark Community Development Corporation (NPCDC), which oversees the retail spaces.
The two spots where the tenant spaces will be currently have dirt floors. Jones said they received a quote that landed at $394,242 to develop the spaces in order to produce additional retail income. Each space will have a vanilla box, which Jones said includes basic furnishings that are ready to be customized off the bat.
The work will involve “the core elements of the area’s structure” like utilities, a bathroom and fire suppression system, Jones told the commission.
The TIF funding will come from the Midtown Allocation Area, which started the year with a $2.6 million balance and is projected to end 2025 with just over $550,000, according to city documents.
When asked when the new spaces will be complete, Jones said he didn’t know the exact timeline but estimated they’d be available for leasing late in the summer.
Veritas Realty manages retail tenant spaces at NexusPark and the couple additions brings the total to 19 spaces. There are 13 tenant spaces leased and under contract and just one vacant. Veritas is in the process of filling three other spaces, according to Jones.
Mother Bear’s pizza takes up three of the tenant spaces. Other occupied retail spaces include: Sojourn Cafe, Nirvana, Creative Eyes, Winnie’s Tea Bar, Valhalla Arcade, Lucas Bros Burgers, Sophea Nail Salon and Riviera Maya.
