Landing contractors gear up for May opening

Construction of the $1 million-plus Garfield’s Restaurant and Pub began in early March and is scheduled for completion in late May, in conjunction with Branson Landing’s May 26 retail opening, said restaurant co-owner Mike Denney. The new restaurant joins more than 80 tenants on the shores of Lake Taneycomo. Anchors Belk department store and Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World bookend the 104 tenant pad sites.

The Garfield’s site is just a snapshot of construction activity at the 95-acre, $420 million development. About 40 tenant contractors are on hand performing infill work, said Killian Construction’s Steve Johnson, senior project manager for Branson Landing.

Springfield-based Killian is managing construction in a joint venture with Turner Construction’s Kansas City divisional office. Killian’s portion of the work is valued at more than $105 million, Johnson said.

Contractors say the mixed-use joint project of HCW Development Co. and the city of Branson is on schedule. “You bet,” Johnson said, “we are going to open Friday, May 26.”

A couple of stores may open even before that date. Belk department store is ahead of the rest with landscaping already in, Johnson said. Belk is expected to open sometime in April.

Elsewhere on the site, Johnson said construction of Hilton’s 12-story boutique hotel and condominiums has recently begun, eyeing a September completion. Crews are performing “punch-list work” on the 600-car parking structure, working on the five-lane Branson Boulevard. that runs through the development, and pouring sidewalks, putting in landscaping and brick pavers along the promenade. Masonry and stucco are being applied on several buildings and concrete is going into the 40-by-300-foot fountain. “It looks like the Bellagio out in Las Vegas,” Johnson said of Los Angeles-based WET Design’s project. “It’s the same people that designed it.”

Shopping districts

Branson Landing is divided into six themed districts: The Country, The Neighborhood, Uptown, Downtown, The Wharf and The Station. Garfield’s is in The Country district, the southern-most point, along with Bass Pro, Father Time Clock & Collectibles and Candy Emporium.

The Neighborhood is home to eating establishments Famous Dave’s BBQ, The Fudgery and The Marble Slab Creamery. For the sports enthusiast, a Cardinals Clubhouse and The Bud Shop will open side-by-side with a NASCAR store across the street. Another recently signed tenant, Arvest Bank, also resides in The Neighborhood district, providing full financial services. The north-central Ark.-based bank has received regulatory approval to open the Branson Landing branch, where it will employ five full-time employees in May.

The Uptown and Downtown districts border a town square, where a $7.5 million light and water show will be on display every 45 minutes.

Several clothing retailers including Chico’s, Coldwater Creek, Christopher & Banks and Victoria’s Secret dot Uptown’s streets, along with artwork at Oh My Goddard Gallery and food and beverage at Waxy O’Shea’s Irish Pub.

Downtown tenants include Brookstone, White House Black Market, J. Jill, Sullivan’s Steakhouse and Liberty Tavern.

Seafood chain Joe’s Crab Shack has fittingly made The Wharf district its home, along with It’s A Wrap, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Haagen-Dazs. Several clothing and shoe shops also have signed on there.

The 68,000-square-foot Belk store serves as an end cap to Branson Landing’s northern edge in The Station district.

Restaurant scene

Other Branson Landing restaurants under construction are lakefront properties Famous Dave’s BBQ, Sullivan’s Steakhouse and the $1 million Joe’s Crab Shack, along with Liberty Tavern at the Hilton and Waxy O’Shea’s Irish Pub. Bass Pro Shops will operate a floating restaurant called White River Fish Co.

The 5,250-square-foot Garfield’s Restaurant, 1221 Branson Landing, will seat 290 and will include a 3,500-square-foot patio overlooking Lake Taneycomo.

“We’ve got a huge patio on the lake – that’s something we want to make a big draw,” Denney said. “And we’ve got huge windows so people can dine and look at the lake.”

The family-oriented establishment will have a sports bar feel, with big screen televisions and a 60-inch HDTV set in the bar area.

The general contractor for the project is L.R. Mourning Co. of Little Rock, Ark., and the architect is Blair Remy Corp. of Edmond, Okla.

Denney and co-owner Judd McPherson, of Joplin-based GRP of Branson LLC, estimate they will hire about 100 people. Applications will be accepted at the end of April for a management team, kitchen staff, servers and host staff.

Daily selections will include a breakfast buffet, appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, steaks, pastas, fruit smoothies and the chain’s signature Fire Strings – thinly sliced potatoes and onions fried and topped with eight hot spices.

Entertainment such as karaoke and local music acts will be offered in the travel and holiday seasons.

Other area Garfield’s are located in Columbia, Jefferson City, Joplin, and Fort Smith and Fayetteville, Ark.

Branson Landing Specs

• $420 million

• 95 acres

• 1.5 million square feet total

• 450,000 square feet retail

• 2,500 parking spaces

• 1.5 miles long

• 4.5 million visitors projected annually

• 2 Hilton hotels

• $90 million in luxury condos sold

• $7.5 million water and light show every 45 minutes

• 1-mile boardwalk

• 2 marinas

Source: HCW Development Co.