COVINGTON, Ga. – Several years ago, Covington Town Center was just a conceptualization – or by some standards a vision.

In 2023, that vision is now taking center stage, as Covington Town Center celebrates its most successful year to date.

Harry Kitchen, president of The Foxfield Company, said that doing a project of this magnitude can be a hassle, but it has all been worth it for the success that the Town Center has garnered.

“2023 has been a big year for Covington town center,” Kitchen said. “When you do a project of this magnitude a lot of it is in the permitting, the conceptual design and the installation of the horizontal infrastructure.”

Horizontal infrastructure is considered vital to a major development such as Covington Town Center. So much so that $12 million was planned into it. 

“In this case we invested $12 million in the horizontal infrastructure – and what I mean by that is the mass-grading, the master stormwater, the internal roads, the landscaping –  all of that horizontal work that was done to support the overall development,” Kitchen said. “A lot of the first three or four years is really taking care of all of the things in preparation. Then you get the mixture of tenants, you sign those tenants up and then you go vertical with your construction.”

Now that the construction has gone ‘vertical’, buildings and businesses are starting to take shape, with tenants moving in.

Just this year, many big name businesses have called Covington Town Center home, starting with Publix in January. 

In the last few months the Town Center has seen a giant expansion in growth, with businesses such as Whataburger, Huey Magoo’s, Chick-Fil-A and Amici opening their doors – just to name a few.

But according to Kitchen, none of what has happened this year has happened overnight.

“People now see all of this explosive growth out there and say, ‘Wow this happened overnight’, but it’s really the result of the last 5-6 years of preparation,” Kitchen said. “A lot of what you see now in 2023 is the culmination of 5-6 years of work and planning and preparation and investment. It’s been a big year.”

That culmination of years of hard work started with a vision. That vision had to be done the right way in order to create what Kitchen calls, “a legacy for the community.”

“It takes a lot of vision and a lot of investment to do it the right way – which we think we did it the right way – it really becomes a legacy for the community,” Kitchen said. “It’s the gift that keeps on giving because of the job creation and the tax revenue they perpetually continue long after we’ve gone and finished and Covington Town Center will certainly contribute annually for the foreseeable future.”

While 2023 was considered a turning point for the Covington Town Center, 2024 is shaping up to be even bigger with the addition of a number of businesses and residences coming to the area. 

Already confirmed are a group of twin residences – which will add 270 townhomes – and the Sinclair at Callaway farm living facility, which broke ground last month. 

But perhaps the biggest addition planned for 2024, is the culmination of a defined retail sector. This is something that has been in the “vision” since day one, but is finally starting to gain some traction.

“We are working with three or four [retail] tenants,” Kitchen said. “We are laying about 80,000 feet of what we call junior retail anchors. We have some specific tenants in mind, but we can’t say them at this point. We’ll call them junior retail anchors that you typically see in a lot of large mixed use centers, and we really want to bring those junior retail anchors in. That’s what our vision was.

“It’s been a little bit of a challenge with inflation and construction costs, but we have people that are very interested in locating in Covington Town Center in the retail sector.”

But outside of the businesses and living areas, are the miles of walking trails that the town center provides. Kitchen says that people often just come out to the area just to use the walking trails.

The mix of both modern industrialism while maintaining an aesthetically pleasing environment is one that is designed to stand out from other mixed use developments. 

“It really is a project that was built for the community to enjoy  and to do multiple things – to have dinner, to exercise, to even live there or to visit,” Kitchen said. “You can do multiple things in a really beautiful environment.”

The variety that Covington Town Center provides is one that Kitchen envisioned several years ago. Now, it is beginning to take shape.

Kitchen is thankful for the support Covington Town Center has received from both the community and political officials alike. He hopes that this mixed use development can create a lasting legacy for Covington.

“What really gives me full satisfaction when I go into Huey Magoo’s, or Amici,  or any of these places is that these places are full and that they’re enjoying the variety that they have,” Kitchen said. “People seem to be thoroughly enjoying the selection we’ve brought to the community. This is really a legacy for Covington.

“We’ve had a lot of cooperation with the political leadership and the council and the mayor from Covington which made this possible. It really takes a vision and a cooperation between a private developer and the political leadership in the community – if you don’t have that– you probably won’t have a development like Covington Town Center.”