When the city of Sugar Land broke ground on Phase 2 of the Brazos River Park development Feb. 26, it not only marked the expansion of the city's parks system but also garnered momentum for future commercial growth south of University Boulevard along Hwy. 59. Phase 2 of the BRP development and the construction of an adjacent outdoor festival site are designed to provide additional park amenities as well as create a home for future city and regional events by fall 2016. "The demand for festival space and functions is here now, and we are trying to accommodate that, and we feel like we can accommodate future growth," said Joe Chesser, Sugar Land assistant director of parks and recreation. Development of the park began in 2007 with the construction of two miles of hike and bike trails, a playground, two picnic pavilions and Sugar Land Memorial Park along University Boulevard. Phase 2 is also expected to help the city continue its transformation into a tourism destination due to the park's proximity to the planned $84 million Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land, said Jennifer May, director of economic development for Sugar Land. "Overall, we think that entire part of the city is going to become a really big destination activity center, especially for our residents and our students at the University of Houston-Sugar Land," she said. Brazos River Park Phase 2 is part of the city's $31.5 million parks bond package voters approved in November 2013. The $12.3 million project is slated to develop 76 acres of park land adjacent to the University of Houston-Sugar Land campus over the next three years, city officials said. Headed by Harpers Brothers Construction, Phase 2 will be delivered in three parts and will include two miles of hike and bike trails, 800 parking spaces and an overlook plaza. Chesser said the park land off Hwy. 59 is also designed to provide various points for residents to access the festival site and surrounding forest leading to the Brazos River. "The good thing about the location off Hwy. 59 is it has good access, it is not the pristine type forest and it has been cleared," Chesser said. "It is an open and grassy area. It lends itself to being developed." Phase 2 of the BRP development will also include a variety of sport and recreational water activities. Fort Bend Green, a local nonprofit that developed the BRP master plan, is working with the Sugar Land Parks and Recreation Department to identify different areas along the Brazos River to build launch areas for kayaking and canoeing. "We are looking to have a launch site every 12 to 15 miles, minimum," said Kim Icenhower, community liaison for Fort Bend Green. "We would like to have shorter legs in there. A lot of it right now is finding sites we have permission to access and are safe [for users] to get in and out of the river." Icenhower said canoeing and kayaking along the river is not recommended for beginners. However, the city of Sugar Land is developing a 25-acre lake—Mid Lake—to accommodate additional recreational and leisure water activities as a part of Phase 2. Mid Lake is partially excavated and is not expected to be ready until 2018, Chesser said. Once complete, the man-made lake will provide a location for canoeing and kayaking beginners as well as an area for fishing. Mid Lake will also accommodate the city's annual dragon boat races in the future. Festival site The 52-acre adjacent outdoor festival site, which is also funded through the Sugar Land parks bond package, is being constructed alongside Phase 2 of the BRP development. The site is expected to host large city events, such as the Fourth of July celebration and other regional events. "A lot of it is addressing the existing needs we have now in terms of growth of the community and activities," Chesser said. "It will allow more private groups to come to the city and hold events here. It is a diverse community that has interest in doing functions." Due to substantial growth of Sugar Land events, the festival site will relieve overcrowding at other city parks and venues. Chesser said the inclusion of the festival site in Phase 2 of the BRP development provides a cushion between large events and residential areas that will minimally affect surrounding neighborhoods, such as Telfair and Greatwood. "This provides a location that is far enough away from neighborhoods for large crowds to not impact the area neighborhoods," Chesser said. Future development With Phase 2 of the BRP development and the festival site within proximity of the future performing arts center—Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land—future commercial and office development is projected to bring additional capital investment to the city, May said. Although the city has not determined the economic effects the festival site and the BRP development would have, May said the Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land, which is being constructed through a partnership between the city and ACE Theatrical Group, could bring an estimated $26 million annually to the city and an estimated $572 million over the next 30 years through sales tax generated at live events and money spent at surrounding retail locations. "I think anytime you have a city that can offer its residents and visitors the highest quality of amenities, that is a really good thing for us to do," she said. May said the city envisions development of another commercial center along Hwy. 59 due to the regional events the outdoor festival site and the Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land are projected to attract. The city is engaging in feasibility studies to determine the types of commercial development and activities that would be ideal for the area off Hwy. 59, including a potential hotel and conference center, May said. "We want to make sure the site is used in a way that fully maximizes the site and is in line with what our community wants it to be," she said.