Columbia realtor hired to coordinate BullStreet real estate operations

Columbia realtor Beronica Whisnant has been hired to coordinate real estate sales and marketing for the BullStreet Neighborhood, the redevelopment project of the 181-acre former State Hospital.

Whisnant will oversee all real estate deals not part of the 31-acre Commons at BullStreet retail complex, which has been much-anticipated but so far has not materialized. She will be responsible for working with other brokers to recruit and grow the number of commercial users in the BullStreet Neighborhood and will open an anticipated on-site office later this year.

Whisnant will also represent the project on boards such as the BullStreet Master Owner’s Association and the planned BullStreet Merchants’ Association.

“Our strategic plan anticipated a local office and manager further down the road, but given the amount of work taking place at BullStreet, we felt that we should go ahead and establish these things now,” said Robert Hughes, president of Hughes Development Corporation, which is the master developer of the project. “We ... believe that she will provide an experienced, local presence as BullStreet continues to grow.”

The planned 20-year project to transform the State Hospital site into a “city within a city” of homes, offices, stores and recreational and educational facilities is considered the largest land deal in modern Columbia history. It is anchored by the $37 million, mostly taxpayer funded Spirit Communications Park, home of the Class A minor league baseball team Columbia Fireflies and the adjacent four-story, 100,000-square-foot First Base Building.

Colliers International will continue to market the remaining space in the First Base Building. Hughes Commercial Properties and Branch Development Service will continue putting together the 400,000-square-foot Commons at BullStreet retail district.

The TownPark at BullStreet townhomes and the Parker Annex will continue to be marketed by their individual developers.

Whisnant began her career at Edens & Avant, where she worked for 10 years before joining Colliers International and subsequently NAI Avant. She is a member of the Greater Columbia Association of Realtors’ Million Dollar Club and a Circle of Excellence life member. She is also a five-time winner of the association’s “Top Leasing Agent” award.

“It’s a big job, and I am excited about working with local business and government leaders across the city and county to fulfill the vision of the BullStreet Neighborhood,” Whisnant said.

This story was originally published May 15, 2017 at 4:03 PM.