Hoover city officials joined representatives from Signature Homes Monday for the official groundbreaking of a new development.  The company bought the former Chace Lake Country Club in April and is in the process of turning into a commerical and residential property.  As part of the deal, the developers are also building a 35-acre public park.

The commercial property will border Highway 31 and is already pre-sold.  Future tenants include Legacy Federal Credit Union, CVS, On Tap Sports Bar & Grill and Harbert Realty.  The residential portion will consist of 215 single-family homes with prices ranging from the mid-200's to mid-300's.  Reservations for the home sites won't be accepted until spring of 2009.

As for the park, it will be located on the piece of property closest to the Cahaba River.  Mayor Tony Petelos says the new land use will be much better for the river than the golf course was, since it took a tremendous amount of fertilizer to keep the greens in good shape.  He adds that, "by having these lakes they're building into this project, we're going to have three separate lakes, that will filter the water before it discharges into the Cahaba."

The developer will do all the site work on the park and expects to turn the property over to the City of Hoover late next year.  According to the mayor, Hoover is already approaching nearly 400 acres of green space and park land, and he's excited to add this latest addition to the count. 

Email To A Friend