GREENVILLE, Miss.–Te Delta Menagerie and the Great River Rd. Market may soon be located inside a 52,000 sq. ft. building in downtown Greenville, said Justin Burch, executive director of the Washington County Economic Alliance.
Burch told the Board of Supervisors Monday that the Alliance had finished with asbestos abatement on the building and an architect had been drawing up plans for what could become a focal point for the city’s tourism industry and business sector.
“C;leveland has the Grammy Museum. Indianola has B.B, King. The goal is that Washington County finally has that one focal point, too,” he said.
Burch said the building, which is on Washington Ave., had been purchased from a woman who lives in Florida, but had never been to Greenville. The plan is to create a menagerie of sorts on one side of it to attract visitors.
“On the left side it’s oversized bronze statues of all the protected animals from the Teddy Roosevelt Wildlife Refuge. The right side, where the warehouse formerly was, will be the Great River Rd. Market.”
He said the market side would provide free space for entrepreneurs. But, he said the focus on wildlife is an organic byproduct of the county’s personality.
“Basically trying to build recreational tourism as Washington County’s piece, especially when looking at who’s coming in and what they’re spending it’s usually around our wildlife heritage,” said Burch.
He said he would bring architectural renderings to the January meeting.
