Celebration Pointe, a new up and coming walkable community within Gainesville is being called the “next generation of retail development.” Featuring over a million square feet in retail, entertainment, restaurant, Class-A office, hospitality and luxury residential space, over 160 acres available for development, and even a new future indoor track stadium, there’s something for everyone. With over 1,000 residential units nearby, over 19 hotels within a 5 mile radius of Celebration Pointe, and a new bridge connecting east and west Gainesville, Celebration Pointe is bound to become the newest shopping hub in Gainesville. 

Retail and Entertainment: 

With retail and entertainment moving south from Newberry Road, this trend is expected to continue towards Celebration pointe. Celebration Pointe will begin to serve as the new headquarters for retail as this area as according to LoopNet, this area has “the highest population growth, and the highest household spending and income in Gainesville and sees 130,000 cars a day on I-75 and Archer Road’ and is “critically underserved by top-level brand retail.”

Currently, according to the article, “North Central Florida experiences ‘retail leakage’ where shoppers must travel significantly outside their neighborhoods to reach favorite retailers,” and this phenomena is “heavily concentrated in Gainesville’s affluent, growing area west of I-75, located within easy reach of Celebration Pointe.” This new and improved community will help draw shoppers in who would otherwise leave the Gainesville area to shop at outlets and malls in larger nearby metropolitan areas.

Sports Tourism Venue: 

Opening in 2022, the state’s newest only indoor track facility will bring around 752k new visitors a year to Celebration Pointe and Gainesville. With proximity and access, hospitality amenities, etc, it is expected to be a significant source of Sport’s Tourism within Gainesville. According to CelebrationPointe.com, ‘In addition to hosting indoor track and field events, the Sports Event Center will host events such as cheerleading, mat sports, basketball, and volleyball” and the stadium will also serve as an ideal space “for trade shows, conventions, and concerts” while being competitive “with sports tourism operations as far away as Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina.” Rumor has it the stadium will even feature twelve basketball courts. The stadium is expected to have $77 million a year impact through sports tourism. 

Overall, Celebration Pointe’s development will be the perfect turnover post pandemic and will be able to revolutionize the way Gainesville natives and students view shopping in our city.