Plans released for former Central Yards site
The plot of land on Central Avenue west of Cooper Street will be used for The Cooper development. (Sophia Surrett/The Daily Memphian)
Developers of a mixed-use development in Cooper-Young known as The Cooper have announced plans for the 5.8-acre site.
Chance Carlisle and David Dlugolenski filed plans for the former Central Yards site with the Memphis and Shelby County Division of Planning and Development.
The land was home to Albert Cook Plumbing Co. west of Cooper Street and between Central and York avenues. The site was bought in a 50/50 joint venture by Carlisle Development Corp. and Atlanta-based Aspire Partners out of a bankruptcy auction in 2023.
The previous Central Yards developer, led by Clayton Kemker, secured financing from an out-of-town investor who lost money in the $3.3 billion Bitcoin scandal in 2023. The government seized the site, forcing it into Chapter 7 bankruptcy and eventual auction.
“We think it’s a prime piece of real estate in the heart of Midtown,” Carlisle said. “It has tremendous potential. We think it’s a highly desirable area to live.”
The $76 million Central Yards plan, which consisted of a 348-unit apartment building and 57,000 square feet of retail, was approved by the Memphis City Council in January 2021.
The new plans, which add 0.22 acres to the development, for The Cooper consists of a four-story, 250-unit multi-family apartment building; a dog park; a 4,150-square-foot feet retail, labeled for a restaurant; 27-unit townhomes; a courtyard; a seven-story, 123-room hotel; two surface parking areas and a parking garage.
Concept plans for The Cooper development. (Courtesy The Reaves Firm)
Concept plans for The Cooper development. (Courtesy The Reaves Firm)
Carlisle said they reduced the amount of retail to make more space available for parking and other uses, including the dog park and courtyard.
“We’ve talked to a number of retail development partners,” Carlisle said. “Fifty thousand was just too much programming. The major swap we think is the 123-key hotel, which needs its own parking.”
Carlisle said the reduction of apartments will make the project financeable since the construction costs and interest rates have risen since the previous Central Yards plans were filed.
“Is there enough demand for 350 units? Probably,” Carlisle said. “But, the cost of doing that type of project with parking is not feasible for that site.”
He said the reduction would also help them prioritize safety, security and podium parking — which he said is the most constraining part of a multi-family development.
“There’s no reason coming to Cooper-Young exacerbating the parking issue,” Carlisle said. “We think we can actually reduce parking congestion by having people live in the neighborhood and walk to bars and restaurants rather than cars.”
Carlisle said the team changed the name because they believed it didn’t accurately reflect the area it was in. With The Cooper, he said, it’s more clear where the project is in the Cooper-Young neighborhood.
If the revised housing and urban development (HUD) plan is approved, Carlisle said the team will proceed immediately.
Carlisle said the development could begin construction in the late third or early fourth quarter of 2025 and be completed in about two years.
Topics
Chance Carlisle David Dlugolenski The Cooper Central Yards Cooper YoungSophia Surrett
Sophia Surrett is a University of Alabama graduate, where she received her B.A. in news media and M.A. in journalism and media studies. She covers small business, nonprofits, restaurant real estate, hospitality and tourism, manufacturing, and transportation and logistics.
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