A former Kmart store in Las Cruces, NM is undergoing a transformation from an abandoned retail space into the Mesilla Park Community Church. 

The church will hold a 1,200-seat auditorium and may include a daycare, coffee shop, bookstore and community center for the City of Las Cruces. Adjacent to the church, commercial real estate developer, SimonCRE will be adding two newly constructed retail locations, each covering approximately one acre of land. The church is expected to open in late 2015 while the additional retail buildings will begin construction next year.

Joshua Simon, president and founder of SimonCRE, purchased the entire 11-acre property working with the Las Cruces City Council to rezone then subdivide it. Once these steps were complete, the former Kmart building was sold to Mesilla Park Community Church with SimonCRE retaining the outparcels for development. As SimonCRE completes development of the retail spaces, the firm will donate $50,000 to the church, helping them continue their work in the community.

The development projects are located on the northwest corner El Paso Road and Idaho Avenue and are minutes away from both Las Cruces High School and the campus of New Mexico State University. As the City of Las Cruces expands, the new retail projects allow for supplementary shopping or restaurants that can cater to the growing urban landscape.

“This project is one we are particularly fond of,” says Simon on the dynamics of the Las Cruces development. “As a commercial real estate developer, the mix of adapting an existing location while creating something new adds character to the neighborhood. Repurposing the mass merchandising retail location into a church is a great use for the community and we are excited to find the right retail partners for these new buildings.”