Farmington Village Opens As ‘Destination Point’

FARMINGTON — Farmington Village held an open house last week to invite visitors to browse four new businesses located in the retail center at 68 W. Main St.

Farmington Village center is a big deal for the city of Farmington and people in this area, said Mayor Ernie Penn.

“That’s huge for us,” Penn said Monday. “Anytime you can have services or businesses in your town and people do not have to go out of town for those, that’s a win-win deal.”

He noted that Larry and Diane Bowden, owners of the Village, had a vision for Farmington to become a destination place, starting with Briar Rose Bakery, and are seeing their vision come to fruition.

“When you have businesses coming into your town that expands the options people have, that gives people an option not to go anywhere else,” Penn added.

Farmington Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored ribbon- cutting ceremonies for all four businesses and welcomed each to the community. Festivities included free food and door prizes.

Farmington Vi l l a ge includes new construction, as well as Briar Rose Bakery and other buildings already on site. In all, the village has 22,000 square feet and 95 parking spaces.

The new part of Farmington Village will be a standalone restaurant for Damon’s BBQ & Grill, which has not opened yet. The four new businesses that have opened are Sweet Scoops, SELAHSpa, S*T*A*R Physical Therapy and Dogwood Clothing Co.

Bowden last week said he has secured an optometrist as the tenant for the remaining two units at the retail center.

Bowden has said he wants Farmington Village to be a destination point for Farmington and believes it will draw customers from Fayetteville, Farmington, Prairie Grove and Lincoln. He refers to this part of Washington County as the “quad city corridor.”

Damon’s restaurant will have an outdoor pavilion in the back, and another one of Bowden’s vision is that the pavilion will become a community center. The pavilion will have a stone fireplace on one end and flaps that can come down on the sides for protection during colder months.

Along with barbecue, Damon’s restaurant will serve other menu items, including salads, appetizers and desserts.

The village is owned by Bowden Properties. Jim Key with Key Architecture is the architect for the project and Marcus Nall with Integrity Construction is the contractor.

PHOTOS BY LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER Left: Farmington and Fayetteville Chambers of Commerce jointly held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Feb. 20 for S*T*A*R Physical Therapy, 68 E. Main St., located at Farmington Village center in Farmington. This is the first S*T*A*R clinic in Arkansas. Center: Jill McLean, owner of Dogwood Clothing Co., and Farmington Area Chamber of Commerce celebrate the new boutique during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Feb. 20. The store is located at 68 E. Main St., and is one of the new businesses at Farmington Village. Right: Farmington Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored a ribbon-cutting ceremony Feb. 20 for SELAHSpa, located at the Farmington Village center on Main Street in Farmington. Owner Christie Bates cuts the ribbon for the ceremony.