A long-quiet corner of East Memphis is about to get busy. Gill Properties is moving ahead with a $10 million mixed-use building at 621 S. White Station Road, at South White Station and Wheelis Drive, bringing new storefronts and second-floor offices to a lot that has mostly sat empty in recent years. The two-story project is planned for roughly 18,145 square feet of ground-floor retail and about 6,000 square feet of office space upstairs, with the explicit goal of bringing life back to the intersection.
As reported by The Daily Memphian, Gill Properties is underwriting the roughly $10 million investment. Brown Gill, the firm’s vice president of development, told the paper he is optimistic about both the timing and the location, and the reporting notes that the team is aiming for a mix of neighborhood restaurants and shops rather than one big anchor tenant.
A commercial listing for the address shows a planned building footprint of about 18,145 square feet with multiple retail bays and upper-floor office suites available, according to LoopNet. Public records compiled by Homes.com show that Gill White Station GP closed on the corner lot in January 2026, giving the developer full control of the property as planning and leasing ramp up.
A Retail-First Bet For White Station
The project is framed as a retail-first play meant to ride the momentum of the adjacent White Oak Shopping Center and extend a more walkable run of storefronts along White Station Road. The Daily Memphian notes that the neighboring center already includes both national and local operators, and the new building is intended to complement that roster, not compete with it.
Design, Parking And Neighborhood Fit
Project notes on the Gill Properties website describe a layout that leans into street-facing storefronts, with front-door customer parking and instructions for employees to use an existing parking garage. Landscaping improvements and a proposed retaining wall are included in the package headed to city reviewers. According to Gill Properties, visible, well-lit storefronts and nearby parking are seen as crucial to making small retail tenants feel like they can succeed along this stretch of White Station, and those priorities helped shape the current design.
Timeline And Leasing
The LoopNet listing already markets at least one small retail bay for lease and labels the property as newly built in 2026, a signal that leasing is underway even as site work and approvals continue to move forward. Market response and any announced tenants will provide the clearest read on how fast the site shifts from empty lot to active retail corner.
Neighbors and nearby business owners will likely be watching for tenant announcements and city permit filings in the coming months, since those details will dictate how quickly the quiet corner turns into a busier block. We will follow official filings and leasing updates and will update coverage as construction progresses and tenant deals are finalized.
