HHHunt starts work on 2,200-home development in Midlothian

Construction has started on a new master-planned community in Chesterfield County’s Midlothian area that will bring hundreds of single-family homes, town houses, apartments and commercial space.

Glen Allen-based developer HHHunt and real estate investment firm GrayCo are developing The Aire at Westchester. The 334-acre tract is at Route 288 and Midlothian Turnpike on the western edge of the Westchester Commons shopping district.

GrayCo is the landowner and HHHunt is the managing partner for the master-planned community, which has been in the works for years. Construction is underway on the first phase of the project, which will include 196 condos and 204 town houses, said Jonathan Ridout, vice president of real estate development and general manager of HHHunt Communities. The commercial areas are in the preliminary design phase, and HHHunt is working on deals with commercial retailers.

Site development could take 12 to 18 months and vertical construction would start in about 18 months. The town houses and condos could be ready in about two years, Ridout says. The commercial space could come online independently, he said, with around 180,000 square feet of commercial space, including office space and restaurants. There is a lot of flexibility in the zoning, he said, to adapt plans to market conditions.

A greenway will bisect the different parcels of land, and the development will include parks and trails.

In total, the development is expected to have about 2,200 residences, including 330 single-family homes on the back portion of the property, but the timing on that piece of the project is flexible, Ridout said.