Developer Daniel Pettit is moving forward with plans to develop an entertainment district on the northwest corner of Ashworth Road and Grand Prairie Parkway (inset photo) in Waukee. The bigger photo was taken looking south toward the intersection of Ashworth and Grand Prairie. Photo by Kathy A. Bolten; map from Google. 

Plans for an entertainment district in Waukee inched forward today with the City Council setting a public hearing on a development agreement with the project’s developer.

Developer Daniel Pettit is planning an entertainment district valued at $101 million on about 27 acres on the northwest corner of Ashworth Road and Grand Prairie Parkway.

The Waukee City Council set a public hearing for Nov. 4 to vote on whether to approve a development agreement with Pettit, who is developing the project under the name Midtown Waukee Holdings LLC.

Six commercial buildings totaling 255,000 square feet would be included in the district, according to the resolution. Dan Dutcher, Waukee’s economic development director, said more buildings would likely be built over the next several years.

The first phase of the development is expected to be valued at least at $80 million, city documents show.

Pettit in August told the Business Record the project would likely include eight to 12 bar-restaurants, up to 500 apartments and an outdoor concert venue.

The resolution also said that the city would provide economic development grants to Pettit for 12 years. Dutcher said Pettit could receive about $1.6 million a year for 12 years, over $19 million in total, from tax increment financing.

“This project, potentially featuring uses and tenants not currently available within Waukee, could be truly unique for this area,” Dutcher said. “That fact, combined with the size of the investment,  could require a significant economic development package.”

Pettit, who could not be reached for comment, has said he’s patterning the entertainment district after the popular Power & Light District in Kansas City. He has said construction could begin in spring 2020. Pettit is also developing 12.4 acres north of the site.

“This will be a regional draw that will help us get other hotels and other uses in that area,” Dutcher said of the entertainment district, which is part of Waukee’s Kettlestone mixed-use development. The 1,200-acre development is located north of  Interstate Highway 80 and west of 98th Street.