Mighty Mississippi Sports and Entertainment District (MMSED) is coming to Vicksburg, Mississippi

By | November 20, 2013

MMSED_Page_1Vicksburg, Mississippi — The Mighty Mississippi Sports and Entertainment District (MMSED) is coming to Vicksburg, Miss. and it promises to be a game changer. The District will be situated on approximately 400 pristine acres on U.S. Highway 61 North.

The development will be a mixture of sports facilities and attractions. Included on the site will be youth tournament baseball, softball and soccer fields, as well as a 115,000sf indoor sports and event center. Also located within the District will be Blues Beach, a 25 acre waterpark and adventure park, complete with zip lines, ropes courses and a gravity-fed mountain coaster.

Live show theaters celebrating Mississippi’s rich blues and country music heritage will be a primary focal point of the District. There will also be opportunities for lodging, dining and retail within the MMSED. The first phase of the Mighty Mississippi Sports and Entertainment District will have a total capitalization in excess of $100M.

District 54 Representative Alex Monsour and a group of local investors approached Innovative Leisure Partners, LLC (ILP) of Houston, Texas with assisting in the project due diligence. Land and Leisure of Dallas, Texas conducted the feasibility study, while ILP performed additional due diligence tasks associated with the project. Upon completion and presentation of the Phase I deliverables, investors contracted ILP as the Master Developer of the MMSED.

Representative Monsuor stated, “We have waited for seven years to bring a project to Vicksburg that would help redefine our great city and Warren County. When we first sat down with Chuck Hendrix of Innovative Leisure Partners, he was a bit skeptical. However, once he saw our community commitment and the existing elements that we could expand upon, he quickly began breathing life into our vision.”

When asked, ILP CEO Chuck Hendrix stated, “The economic phenomenon that is youth sports in this country, combined with all of the additional offerings of the District, makes for a compelling compilation of venues. The synergies created by this and the other vibrant attracts in Vicksburg are an exciting prospect. Being located a stone’s throw from Interstate 20 doesn’t hurt, either.”

Hendrix went on to say, “The support this project has received has truly been invaluable; the citizens of District 54 are fortunate indeed to have a tireless public servant in Rep. Alex Monsour.

The project has already attracted notable participants on the project development team: TBG Partners, a global master-planning and landscape architecture firm, is currently under contract and preparing the site layout. TBG is also charged with preserving as much of the natural landscape as possible.

The Neuman Group/Water Technology, Inc. is an industry-leading design/build aquatics firm and has been tasked with bringing the waterpark, Blues Beach, to fruition. MMSED is scheduled to open Summer 2015.