MANSFIELD — Marquise Stillwell said he doesn’t see an isolated vacant property when he looks at the former Westinghouse site along East Fifth Street.
The Mansfield native, now a national designer, developer and entrepreneur based in New York City, sees connectivity to the rest of the city, adding another economic cluster that can contribute to a growing mix of city redevelopment.
Stillwell, founder and principal of the New York design studio and consulting firm Openbox, asked the Richland County Land Bank on Tuesday to allow him 12 months of exclusivity. That’s the time he needs to launch an effort to create what he called a “purpose-built community hub” on nearly 14 acres of the city’s near-east side.
Attorneys for Stillwell and the Land Bank board will work on a contract that spells out such an agreement for the two sides to consider.
Any such deal would likely contain clauses allowing either side to withdraw.
“I am really excited to be here,” Stillwell told the Land Bank board members. “This is about having the access to due diligence. We’re not asking for anything beyond that. We’re not asking for money.”
His development career spans across two decades, and “his curiosity for people and spaces developed into a passion for designing systems to make environments better for all people,” according to his website.
“Our vision is to develop what we are calling Lower Downtown, a new kind of place where we will have spaces to live, work and play. These components will create a vibrant hub that’s 360-degrees connected to the rest of the city,” said Stillwell, who launched his presentation by talking about his childhood memories in the city.
“We’re not going to go into the specifics of the space, because there is still a lot research that we need to do,” said Stillwell, who said he has been working and thinking about the site for the last 18 months.
“I am a developer. This is what I do. We know there are challenges. But we see those as challenges of opportunity,” said Stillwell, who offered photos with developmental concepts.
Open spaces. Residential spaces. Restaurant spaces. Gathering spaces. Retail spaces.
He said it will not be easy.
“I’m here with love and I know that love isn’t always enough, but I am here because I love this city. I have the contacts. I have the resources to be able to do this,” Stillwell said.
“Everything that we’ve been doing is me flying here, me paying to come here, me being here multiple times, not asking for any dimes or anything (or) any payback, it’s me making an investment.”
Demolition and cleanup on the sprawling former Westinghouse site began in December 2022, including the former “A” building at 200 E. Fifth Street. and the adjoining 13-acre “concrete parcel.”
It’s still perhaps a year away from being ready to be redeveloped, according to the Land Bank. The site is a $6 million project that has utilized largely state grant funds and American Rescue Plan Act dollars from the City of Mansfield and Richland County.
Stillwell, joined at the meeting by an architect and an attorney with whom he works, said he owns five different companies and has partnerships and business relationships around the country.
He said the project could take years to develop and carry a price tag as high as $150 million.
It’s those national relationships, he said, that will help him make a significant improvement in city where he was born and the larger community in which he grew up.
“I have been in conversations for awhile with other potential co-developers that would come in with us and also identifying some early action opportunities,” he said.
Stillwell noted that a Land Bank agreement to support his efforts would help secure those partnerships.
Mansfield Mayor Jodie Perry and Richland County Commissioner Tony Vero, both Land Bank board members, are among the local officials who have been discussing the potential project with Stillwell, a Madison graduate who later earned his MBA in economics.
“I think the thing that in the conversations that we’ve had with Marquise and his partners is that for them to have serious discussions with people that might commit to this … they need something that says ‘We’re serious, this isn’t just pie-in-the-sky or just our dream,'” Perry said Tuesday.
“As Commissioner Vero and I and others have talked, we thought that this is the right time, while the site work is being finished up, to give them that ability … or at least for us to discuss giving them that ability to do that.”
Perry said the proposed project is in line with goals identified in the Mansfield Rising project, including operating from a mindset of possibility instead of a mindset of scarcity.
“From the city’s perspective, I love what Marquise brings to the table and that he has these strong local ties. I love that you led with that because we’ve all been … sometimes (being from) out of town is more difficult.
“But he has those national connections which I think is really important because this is a big site. It’s going to take a lot of effort and years of work. It’s a big thing and in my opinion, I think it’s time for Mansfield to dream big,” the mayor said.
“The two generations before us built Westinghouse out of nothing and made it into a powerhouse. This is really our opportunity to do that for the generations that follow us,” the mayor said.
“I don’t see any reason why it can’t happen here.”
Vero, who helped launch the effort that led to the Westinghouse demolition, spoke in favor of the proposal.
“This is the group that has been coming in from out-of-town, spending their own dollars. We haven’t committed to them anything and we also know we have a site that’s not going to be ready for another six months or more.
“From where I sit while the site’s being worked on, it gives a group (the opportunity) to say, ‘Hey, give us a chance for a year and if we don’t dazzle you … no biggie,'” Vero said.
“I expect to be dazzled though, if we do this,” he said with a laugh. “Don’t go in with low expectations, but I’m big on interest in spending their own dimes. And when you come in without asking for anything other than an opportunity …
“To me it seems like a pretty low-risk situation to give a group an opportunity … to show an interest in someone not only who is unique with his background, to say, ‘Hey, I grew up here, but also some other connections that you may not have,” Vero said.
