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Riverbend Project Receives Funding from State
After eighteen months of presentations, discussions, special sessions, and some sleepless nights spent by key players, the largest development in DeSoto County to date is about to be more than a dream. Thanks to the efforts of local and state officials, developers have the financing and incentives needed to roll up their sleeves and begin digging dirt on the $2.7 billion Riverbend Crossing.
On Wednesday, September 6, Governor Haley Barbour signed a bill passed in a special legislative session approving $23 million in infrastructure funds and $150 million in sales tax revenue for Riverbend’s developer, Phillips Development Company. Phillips Development Company will invest at least $475 million in private money and create 3500 jobs through the project in order to receive the financing and tax revenue.
The DeSoto County Board of Supervisors passed measures allowing them to set up a Public Improvement District and Tax Increment Financing if needed by the developers, and the Town of Walls agreed to annex the area, which will more than double the size of the current town. With those pieces of the puzzle in place, and with some encouragement and perseverance by Senator Doug Davis, Governor Barbour agreed to call the special session during which the bill allowing financing and incentives was passed. Despite a flurry of activity surrounding a last-minute glitch, the bill was passed virtually unopposed by both the Mississippi Senate and House of Representatives.
Riverbend Crossing will be located in the western portion of DeSoto County near the Tunica County line. The project will cover 4300 acres and will include a movie-themed entertainment district with an amusement park and aquarium or museum. The entertainment district will be the first phase, and will be the source of the tax revenue for the developer. Phillips Development Company will receive rebates of 80% of tourism tax revenues over the next ten years, up to $150 million dollars. According to Phillips, plans for the entertainment district will be finalized within the next 30 days, with its opening planned in the next three years.
Eventual plans for Riverbend include up to 9500 homes, golf courses and hotels. The development could increase the population of Walls to more than 30,000.