Steffaney Cronin, the owner of SJC Construction, grew up in Waukee. She remembers visiting the homes of her grandmother and great-grandmother as a child and the “warm, fuzzy” memories of time spent playing the card game Old Maid for hours.

It’s those memories that have inspired Cronin to undertake a project to redevelop three lots she acquired last summer in the Waukee Village District into a hub that she hopes will be a space for others to create memories for their families.

“I just have a ton of fond memories in that Waukee area,”’ said Cronin, whose family has been around Waukee for five generations. “If I stand on this lot where I’m going to put my building, I can see my great-grandmother’s house, my mom’s house, my grandma’s house. It’s just such a warm, fuzzy feeling and that’s why I decided to look into building something there.”

It’s on the site of the now-closed Jerry’s Barber Shop at 420 Sixth St., in the city’s downtown area, also known as the Triangle. Cronin said she plans to build a 12,000-square-foot building that can accommodate a variety of small businesses in the neighborhood that has been a hub for residents to sell their wares, and for community gatherings for decades. Her grandfather owned the gas station across the street from the site.

“It’s always been a hub for the community to come out and that’s kind of what I want to bring back,” Cronin said.

She envisions a design with a Charleston, S.C., or Savannah, Ga. feel, with high arched windows and an alleyway with lighting for the building’s tenants to hold events, meet with customers or just to take a coffee break.

“It’s going to bring back that community feel,” Cronin said.

She will offer flexible spaces for tenants, depending on their needs. From the front, the building looks like it has three units on street level with three units on the second floor, but those spaces can be divided between the front and back to meet a tenant’s needs, Cronin said.

She also wants to provide flexible lease options to allow businesses to try the space on a trial run to make sure it works for them, she said.

“If it’s not working for someone, I don’t want them to feel the pressure [of signing a long-term lease],” Cronin said.

She says she has most of the space already filled, but is still finalizing some of those details for how the space will be used. She envisions it being for small, mom-and-pop businesses, not larger chains.

For example, Cronin said there could be another barbershop, a coffee shop or a bakery.

The large arched windows could be decorated for the holidays. She remembers the scent of lilac bushes at her great-grandmother’s house, so she’s going to plant lilac bushes in the backyard of the new building. There are covered, top-floor patios where people can gather to watch activities below or listen to nearby music.

Cronin hopes to begin construction this spring and have the building ready for tenants before the end of the year.

Cronin started her company in 2015 after her father died. She said she needed to channel her grief into something she felt was worthwhile. She decided to rely on her background to move forward.

Her father was involved in Des Moines Bolt Supply in Des Moines, so she was exposed to the hardware business growing up, and as she got older, she’d help him with various projects and social media campaigns.

Cronin herself is an interior design major from Iowa State University and has a nursing degree from Mercy College of Health Sciences. But it was her Waukee roots and those memories of spending time at her grandparents’ homes that inspired her project, her first foray into commercial development.

“It means the world to me because you don’t even think about that when you’re 12 or 13 years old and you’re at your great-grandma’s house playing Old Maid and she’s giving you this unconditional love and this unconditional time, and you don’t realize it at the time but you look back now and it’s like that was such a wonderful, simple time,” she said. “It’s just very nostalgic. So, it means so much to hopefully give that to somebody else who is 12 or 13 who either lives in the area or walks in that area.”

“I’m just hoping to give back some of that warm, fuzzy community vibe I had as a child and didn’t realize how cool it was,” Cronin said. “I just hope it brings a sense of community and excitement.”