Altoona City Administrator Jeff Mark often finds himself sitting across the table from strangers. Frequently, they are proxies, representing unnamed clients who are contemplating a development deal with the city.

One face he does know is Mike Whalen, the Moline, Ill., entrepreneur who has sparked the development of the Prairie Crossing area near Interstate 80 and U.S. Highway 65. It’s the location of Bass Pro Shops, Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse, a planned hotel and, before too long, an upscale outlet mall.

The developer of that mall, New England Development, recently closed on the purchase of nearly 40 acres where it plans a shopping center in the 350,000-square-foot range. The size fluctuates, Mark said. 

The Whalen family operation sold the land for nearly $7 million (see Notable Transactions).

Mark is hoping that the sale, and the start of land excavation that is sure to follow, will prod some of the anonymous “tire kickers” into making a commitment to Altoona.

The planning and approval for the mall is in “high gear,” he said. There will be a public hearing April 20 for a special zoning designation that would allow city staff to approve adjustments in the site plan, as opposed to taking every change for the City Council. The zoning would be unique to Prairie Crossing.

Mark said that with the development of the shopping center, there will be 80 to 90 acres of development ground left in Prairie Crossing. The city has provided $10 million in streets, sewer, sanitary and storm water improvements for the area.