City of memphis seeks a designer for southwest twin drive-in theater site redevelopment
The City of Memphis is looking for a designer to build a community anchor in Southwest Memphis.
The City has put out a request for information (RFI) for a designer to draft a plan to redevelop 18 acres of land at 4233 S. Third St., which was formerly the Southwest Twin Drive-In theater.
The drive-in originally opened in 1956 and became a community amenity. It operated as a theater until 2001.
A library, a police precinct, a community center, and family-friendly commercial are all uses the City wants to see on the site, according to Memphis Housing and Community Development director Ashley Cash.
While a movie screen and a concession stand, a newly built library, and a police precinct are all definite aspects of the plan, Cash said the City is hoping for ambitious and creative proposals. The City has $2 million set aside for cleanup and site remediation and is still in the process of figuring out the cost of the overall development.
Cash said that the City has sought out community input on what to do on the site and has garnered support for the plan. In June, a cleanup of the property was hosted — removing a lot of blight.
“One thing is [the community] felt there's not been a whole lot of new investment in the southwest part of town," she said.
And not just any investment Cash noted, but purposeful: “How do we make sure it's quality, state-of-the-art, and all the things that people want?”
The larger goal of the proposed project is to make the old drive-in a community anchor for Westwood, similar to what the City did with the Raleigh Springs Civic Center (RSCC). Since that project in Raleigh came online in 2021, it has attracted new investment to the Raleigh area. The RSCC was MBJ's Building Memphis Community Impact award winner in 2021.
“Over in Raleigh, we've seen people using the walking trail. The skate park is always a place to go,” Cash said. “We want to recreate that same energy and vibe [here].”
Cash also hopes the development could attract new investment in Westwood. She pointed out that while the City controls the 20-acre site the former theater sits on and is mostly focused on civic and commercial uses, a goal of the site's redevelopment is to bring new residential development to the area.
“There is a great single-family neighborhood right adjacent to the site, and we own some property that's at the western corner,” she said. “There is a perfect site for some affordable housing and then some market rate [housing].”
The City also wants to move expeditiously on the project.
There is a mandatory virtual pre-bid conference being held Wednesday, Aug. 16 at 10 a.m. Bids are due before Aug. 30.
After that, work is set to begin immediately on the project. Cash noted the City wants a contractor — also referred to as a construction manager at risk (CMAR) — named before the end of 2023.