Developer seeks to sell long-vacant Mooresville mill

By: Mooresville Tribune | Mooresville Tribune
Published: July 31, 2009

Unable to find suitable tenants for the renovated former Burlington Industries plant south of downtown Mooresville, the plant's owner has decided to try to sell the 39-acre site.

Cherokee Mooresville, a real estate private equity firm, announced Thursday it has hired Pappas Properties LLC of Charlotte to market the property.

Cherokee purchased the vacant textile mill in 2001, which had housed the original Mooresville Cotton Mill and its successors from 1898 to 1999. Cherokee did extensive exterior and interior renovation "to residential standards and created a mixed-use plan that celebrated the history and heritage of the site," according to an announcement from the Town of Mooresville.

Cherokee has been unable to find tenants, however, and "the timing of the redevelopment process has stretched beyond the duration of its second investment fund," the Town said in the news release.

Since Burlington Industries closed, several high-profile plans for the old mill property were announced. The most recent, in 2006, proposed a $150 million mixed-use "urban village" of residential, retail and office space to be called Mooresville Mills.

Mooresville Mayor Bill Thunberg said town officials believe that the property's large size, proximity to downtown Mooresville and location as a possible commuter rail terminus make it attractive for a variety of future uses, including mixed-use transit oriented development.

"We believe that the site has excellent long term potential as a higher density, transit oriented development and could accommodate open space as well," Thunberg said. "We look forward to collaborating with a new owner on a redevelopment plan that will benefit our community."

Peter Pappas of Pappas Properties said the old mill site "represents a unique multi-use opportunity along a future transit corridor and an excellent value in one of the region's fastest growing communities.

"The opportunity to redevelop this asset is further enhanced by the business friendly environment in the Town of Mooresville."

Added Town Manager Steve Husemann, "From the beginning, Cherokee recognized the historical, cultural, and economic significance of the Mooresville Mills property. While we are disappointed that Cherokee is unable to complete the revitalization of the site, we are pleased to see the potential for moving reuse of this site forward." said Town Manager Steve Husemann.

For more information about the site, call 704-716-3900.