National retail developer Vestar is proposing to build a $130 million commercial center and repurpose a historically significant farm property in Laveen, one of 15 villages within the city of Phoenix.

The nearly 400,000-square-foot retail center, to be called Laveen Towne Center, is slated for a department store, entertainment use, restaurants, specialty shops and services all centered around the historic farm site on about 40 acres.

It will be designed with Laveen's agricultural environment in mind and feature rustic architecture while also serving as a public space and a gathering area with amenities for the community, said Vestar, which has worked on the project for more than a year and a half.

On the northeastern portion of the property, Vestar plans to revitalize and repurpose the nearly 100-year-old Hudson Farmhouse, which was first developed in 1926. The farmhouse and surrounding open areas will be suitable for a potential restaurant or wine-related use.

"When you look at the site, it's immediately clear that the farmhouse is something special and unique and it lays out well with where it's located in the site and how we'd normally develop a typical community center," Kean Thomas, director of finance for Vestar, told the Business Journal. "Laveen has a real history with this farmhouse."

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By Audrey Jensen - Reporter, Phoenix Business Journal