Progress Continues to Bring Life Back to the Imperial Redevelopment

SUGAR LAND, TEXAS - The Johnson Development Corp. has entered into a contract to begin the preliminary phase of the historic char house renovation. Over the next four months, a majority of tanks, pipes, smoke stacks and other process equipment will be removed from the building to make way for the build-out of its final intended use.

"We are excited to start this clean-up phase of the refinery site," said Shay Shafie, General Manager of the Imperial Redevelopment. "Removing all of the equipment will allow us to start focusing on the highest and best use for this historic building".

All of the work on the char house will be done internally protecting the exterior of the building with the exception of the smoke stack removal which spans from the third floor through the roof. The solid concrete smoke stacks must be removed for safety reasons and to allow for flexibility of the added build-out space. "We plan to replicate the stacks with a non-structural building material in the future in order to preserve the exterior look of the Char House," said Shafie.

Meticulous care has been taken by Johnson Development to preserve the historical significance of the entire Imperial site. The developer has worked directly with the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation to insure that the rich history of Imperial has been preserved while bringing the structures to a safe and habitable condition. Several artifacts have been tagged by the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation to be preserved and incorporated into the development.

Plans for Imperial, a 700 acre Master-Planned Community located in Sugar Land, Texas, include the redevelopment of the historic Imperial Sugar Company refinery site and the preservation of several of the iconic structures dating back to the early 1900's. Imperial has also been selected as the site for the City of Sugar Land's new minor league baseball stadium which has been aptly named the StarTex Power Stadium. Just over a year ago, Johnson Development was selected as Imperial's development manager by Cherokee Sugar Land LP and the State of Texas General Land Office. Johnson's charge is to bring life back to the old Imperial Sugar Refinery site with a mix of retail, commercial, hospitality, restaurants, office and urban residential land structures. The master plan also includes a significant amount of land across from the Sugar Land Regional Airport being dedicated for the City's next professional business and technology park.

For more information about Imperial, visit www.imperialsugarland.com.