By Gillian Taylor | Staff Writer
The Brazos Riverfront Development Project, originally dubbed the “Brazos Promenade” project, is part of an effort by the City of Waco to revitalize the area near the Brazos River by bringing shops, businesses and apartments to downtown Waco.
The project also includes collaboration between the City of Waco and Baylor on the Paul and Alejandra Foster Basketball Pavilion, which university officials said they hope bridges the gap between the city and the university.
Much of the development is near the site of the basketball pavilion, which will host Baylor’s men’s and women’s championship basketball programs and accommodate various events and concerts for the city.
The $185 million arena will be built along the Brazos River on the west side of Interstate 35, adjacent to Clifton Robinson Tower. President Linda Livingstone said in a city council meeting last year she hopes the project will help better connect Waco and Baylor.
“I-35 in many ways is kind of a barrier between Baylor and the city,” Livingstone said.
The basketball pavilion will have room for 7,500 fans and will be used by both the university and the city. Baylor will have 10 calendar days to host events outside of athletics, and the city will host 25 community events a year. The opening is targeted for January 2024.
The capacity for the current basketball pavilion, the Ferrell Center, is 10,284 seats.
Shiv Patel, graduate assistant to the men’s basketball team and former head student manager, said he thinks the downsizing will create a louder and more energetic atmosphere. He said games in the previous season often didn’t fill the stadium and had closer to 6,500 or 7,000 people, so he is excited to see the Foster Basketball Pavilion packed with people.
Baylor Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mack Rhoades said the “state-of-the-art” 245,000-square-foot facility will have an old-school look and will feature a field house.
Alongside the basketball pavilion, Waco city manager Bradley Ford said there will be a “revitalized riverwalk” with additional restaurants and the opportunity for a hotel space.
According to a Baylor press release, in this building phase, more than $160 million will be added from private investment. Funding will also go toward 600 new parking spaces in addition to the 400 already under construction in this area.
Bitty & Beau’s Coffee, located on Franklin Avenue in downtown Waco, is near the riverfront construction. The franchise’s owner, Mark Sauer, said he is looking forward to the prospect of increased tourism and foot traffic in the area.
“It will pull the tourists that right now are only in a four-to-five-block area around the Silos to the downtown area and to more businesses around there,” Sauer said.
Catalyst Urban Development is leading the construction on the Riverfront Development Project, which was first announced in 2015. In addition to the riverwalk and river-adjacent restaurants, the area near the Brazos River will also see new apartments and shop spaces, with possible overall investments from the project estimated to total $700 million.
For decades, Waco City Council has been discussing how to make the riverfront ideas turn into a reality, Ford said.
“It’s going to feel like an overnight success that took four decades,” Ford said.
The riverfront construction is in accordance with several city-commissioned plans, including the Imagine Waco Plan from 2010. This proposal details an active and vibrant downtown: an “18-hour city” where residents can enjoy extended hours of their day.
