First look at farmers market, healthcare facilities, more planned for busy Columbia road

Earlier this year, city and state officials announced a major new project on Columbia’s Bluff Road that would transform 23 acres into a civic and commercial center. Now you can see what it will look like.

Columbia Empowerment Zone Inc. On Wednesday, he shared a video containing images of the site. This is the public’s first look at the new farmers market, medical office, government buildings and high-end apartments promised as part of a sweeping development of the corridor just southeast of Interstate 77. The project will be located on a parcel at the intersection. Bluff and Atlas roads.

The project, called The Station at Congaree Pointe, aims to bring new life and dollars to an area that city leaders acknowledge has long been ignored.

“This is transformational,” Columbia City Manager Teresa Wilson said at a press conference announcing the project in February. “It warms my heart for the people who are here, the community members who are here because some of them have been waiting a really long time to see these types of services in this area where they don’t have to travel, it’s too far for them, especially for the elderly.”

In total, the project will include a county magistrate’s office and sheriff’s substation; a new Columbia municipal courthouse and the Columbia Police Department’s Southeast regional headquarters; a 15,000-square-foot Cooperative Health health center offering primary care, obstetrics, pediatrics, dental and behavioral health services; and a marketplace for fresh foods, commercial kitchens, and a cafe or restaurant area.

Project, Columbia Empowerment Zone Inc. is inspected by. the city’s small business development organization. But it is a product of collaboration between city, county and state governments.

“The partnership is historic and will serve as the cornerstone for future improvements and redevelopment of the Bluff Road corridor,” reads the statement, which was shared along with video footage Wednesday.

Empowerment District director Felicia Maloney previously said the market element of the project, which will include commercial kitchens, a farmer’s market and more, will cost at least $10 million.

The project currently has $4 million in state funding, and Maloney said his team will also pursue grant dollars.

Construction of the project is expected to start in February 2025.