CONWAY, Ark. (July 23, 2013) – Hendrix College and a group of investors have
come together in a joint venture to develop Market Square South in The Village at
Hendrix, a New Urbanist neighborhood adjacent to the Hendrix campus.
The 30,000-sq.-ft. Market Square South building will include commercial tenants
on the ground floor and student residences on the upper two floors.
The commercial tenants in building will include the new Conway office of Delta
Trust & Bank, a full-service financial institution with branches located across
Arkansas; The Purple Cow, a popular ’50s style diner with locations in Little Rock
and Hot Springs, Ark., and Dallas, Plano, and Fairview, Texas; and Conway Management,
Inc., a hotel management group. The project should be completed by the end of the
year with the commercial tenants opening for business early in 2014. Student residences
should be ready by the beginning of the fall 2014 semester.
“Delta Trust is thrilled about our new home in Conway. The Village has a very
dynamic atmosphere and we are working to create an innovative branch that mimics
the feel with the latest technology and best customer service possible,” said French
Hill, CEO of Delta Trust.
Unlike a traditional commercial lease arrangement, the building’s ownership will
be shared. Hendrix will own the upper two floors of the building and the investor
group, which includes the ground floor tenants, will own the ground floor.
“Our Conway customers have requested we locate a store here and we’ve been working
for the past four years to find the ideal location. Hendrix has delivered all the
right attributes for Purple Cow to bring great food, shakes and fun for the young
of all ages. We couldn’t be more excited,” said Phillip Tappan, CEO of Purple Cow.
The Village at Hendrix already includes mixed-use buildings that similarly house
students and commercial businesses.
“We’re very excited about this unique partnership,” said Hendrix Board of Trustees
chair David Knight. “Market Square South will be a great addition to both The Village
and to residence life for our students. Delta Trust & Bank and the Purple Cow
are a great fit and will add value as part of our community.”
Originally announced by the College’s leadership and Board of Trustees in 2006,
The Village’s initial plans included both residential and commercial phases, as
well as a watershed restoration project which serves as an amenity for the neighborhood,
as an outside classroom for students studying the environment, and as the primary
storm water management for the neighborhood.
Approximately 45 single-family homes and 80 apartments have been built in the
first residential phase of the mixed-use neighborhood.
“This project helps complete the square and provides a great core to our commercial
area that we can really build off of for a more vibrant commercial and retail center,”
said Ward Davis, CEO of The Village.
Additional residential and commercial phases for The Village are on the drawing
board, Davis said.
Prior to providing the master design for the Village at Hendrix, the Miami, Florida-based
New Urban design firm Duany Plater-Zyberk and Company created the communities of
Seaside in Florida and Kentlands in Maryland. DPZ also developed the master plan
for Hendrix College.
Purple Cow was created in 1989 by the founders of Continental Cuisine, Paul Bash
and Hendrix College alumnus Ed Moore. In 2007, Phillip Tappan purchased Purple Cow
after becoming acquainted with the restaurant group while serving as the restaurant’s
distributor at Quality Foods. Purple Cow features Arkansas made Yarnell’s ice cream
and 100% beef hamburgers freshly ground daily, never frozen.
Delta Trust & Bank is a community bank with a comprehensive approach to wealth
management. With branches in central, southeast and northwest Arkansas, Delta Trust
is committed to delivering industry-leading guidance in banking, trust, investments,
insurance and home financing. Founded in 1910, over the last century Delta Trust
has grown from a small town bank serving the timber and farming families of southeast
Arkansas to a financial partner meeting the needs of clients across the country.
Additional information is available at delta-trust.com.
Founded in 1876, Hendrix College is a national leader in engaged liberal arts
and sciences education. For the fifth consecutive year, Hendrix was named one of
the country’s “Up and Coming” liberal arts colleges by U.S. News and World Report.
Hendrix is featured in the 2012 edition of the Princeton Review as one of the country’s
best 377 colleges, the latest edition of Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools
That Will Change the Way You Think about Colleges, Forbes magazine's
annual list of America's Top 650 Colleges, and the 2013 edition of the Fiske Guide
to Colleges. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since
1884. For more information, visit www.hendrix.edu.