By Emily Williams
When the ribbon is cut on Lane Parke retail development Oct. 20, developers Rele Evans and his son, John, will celebrate more than a job well done. They will celebrate the product of a decade worth of work.
Though the buildings across the space are new, the land that rests beneath the Lane Park apartments, the Grand Bohemian Hotel, the retail space and the existing Mountain Brook Shopping Center has been a part of the Evans family since 1947.
According to Rele Evans, his father, Aurelius “Rele” Augustus Evans Jr., was a Mobile man who fell in love with Mountain Brook. He bought the land and developed the original Parke Lane apartments to serve a community of people he felt were “extra special and unique.”
“My father loved this city,” Rele said. “He would spend almost every week up here, Sunday through Thursday, and then he would drive back to Mobile on the weekends. He also played a lot of golf at Birmingham Country Club.”
Keeping in mind his father’s wishes to maintain and improve the quality of life in a town he held in high regard, Rele and John Evans decided to reinvent the use of the land and create a lasting development.
“What we’ve ended up with is a real tribute to our original vision,” John said. “We never wavered from the idea that this would be a legacy project.”
Though he said the process flew by, John noted that presenting, developing and executing the project wasn’t without its road blocks and bumps. He said the city and community were wary of the plan when it originally was presented.
The father and son duo chalked the opposition up to the city not having dealt with a development of this size and nature in about 60 years.
“The city pushed to make sure that the retail space would blend architecturally with the rest of the village,” John said.
Rele and John commended their architects and builders on creating a physical construction that looks almost identical to the Tudor-style image drawn in the original renderings.
Filling the Space
As of last week, all but two of the retail spaces were spoken for, and both of the vacancies are restaurant spaces. As planned, John said the space will feature a mixture of retailers and restaurants that aren’t present in the area now, as well as Western Market and local boutiques A’Mano and B. Prince.
“At this point, people are able to see and touch the quality of the amenities rather than looking at a picture,” John said. “We expect those two spots to be filled in the next few weeks.”
Moving forward, the developers’ final phase of their project will involve tearing down the existing Mountain Brook Shopping Center and replacing it with a construction similar to the new retail space.
The project will begin once the center’s current leases run out, the longest of which is Rite Aid’s. Before news of a Walgreen’s/Rite-Aid merger, John said the company didn’t care to shorten its existing lease.
But with news of a merger, John said, he has reached out to Walgreen’s officials and presented them with a new offer that he hopes they will sign off on in the coming days.
With the first phase of the retail space finished, John said he expects the second phase will be a breeze in comparison.
Honoring History
In recognition of the project’s family connection, the city named the street running through the retail development Rele Street.
Beyond being a solid sounding name reminiscent of Nashville’s Beale Street, Rele said, the name has its own history – the history of his father and his grandfather before him.
On Oct. 20, Rele Street will be blocked off to allow the public to join in on an opening celebration. The “hometown party” will feature pumpkin decorating, music by local musicians, craft beer for the adults and some special offers from the surrounding merchants.
The Evans added that the party isn’t just for them, it’s for everyone who waited in anticipation, through the multitude of meetings, and maintained their support.