Construction of Middlebrook Lofts, the first phase of Middebrook Agrihood’s Town Center development in Cumming, is complete, the project’s developers announced.

The two-story Middlebrook Lofts project includes 26 apartment units and five retail spaces, located at the extension of South 44th Street just south of Highway G14/Cumming Avenue. The building features solar energy, geothermal heating and cooling and an architectural design reminiscent of small-town main streets.

Confirmed retail tenants include the Farmstand by Manastash Mercantile, a lifestyle boutique and Reese Marie, an Aveda salon. Both storefronts are expected to open in late summer.  

Construction is also underway on the future headquarters of Peoples Co., a national land brokerage firm currently based in Clive. Located on the east side of South 44th Street, the 23,000-square-foot building will feature office space for 80 employees and additional retail storefronts. Construction is expected to be completed in early 2026.

“This is a special opportunity for Peoples Co.,” Steve Bruere, the company’s president, said in a prepared statement. “As an agricultural real estate firm, we’re proud to establish our headquarters in the agricultural capital of the world. In Middlebrook, and in a building that honors the character of a 1900s rural Iowa Main Street, in many ways, this feels like Peoples Co. is coming home.”

Middlebrook Agrihood is an 800-plus-acre, $750 million development that Bruere founded about seven years ago. The development includes single-family houses, a general store, working farm, community gardens and Wilson’s Orchard & Farm.

All of Middlebrook’s sections are connected with wide paths that pass ponds and stands of trees. The paths all connect with the Great Western Trail.

Construction is also underway on the Cottages at Middlebrook, located near the Great Western Trail. The development will add 30 detached one- and two-story houses to Middlebrook. The cottages will range in size from 1,085 square feet to 1,290 square feet. The Cottages will be available in 2026.

Both the Lofts and Cottages were awarded Workforce Housing Tax Credits by the Iowa Economic Development Authority.