Three homegrown businesses are set to anchor Lawrence’s newest mixed-use hub at Fort Ben. City officials on Tuesday confirmed that Post 23, Tailwind Cafe and Comfort Option will be the first tenants at The Corner at Fort Ben, a project rising near the Fort Benjamin Harrison campus. The lineup includes an upscale Italian American restaurant from the Pizzi family, an aviation-inspired coffee and ice cream shop, and Foamcraft’s Comfort Option showroom. The announcement lands just as construction wraps up and the development moves toward a planned summer opening.
Meet the first tenants
The city rolled out the news in a Facebook post Tuesday, naming the three locally owned businesses that will call The Corner home. The announcement came from the official City of Lawrence account, which confirmed Post 23, Tailwind Cafe and Comfort Option as the inaugural tenants. The development’s own site, The Corner at Fort Ben, carries matching descriptions for each concept, including restaurant details and who is behind each business.
Developer and timeline
Foamcraft Inc., a Lawrence-based foam fabricator and the company behind Comfort Option, is developing The Corner and broke ground on the project in April 2025, according to reporting. The Indianapolis Business Journal reported that the site covers a 2.7-acre parcel near 56th Street and Lee Road. In a city announcement about the project, Foamcraft’s Nathan Elliott said the development grows from a family vision to “produce goods and services that positively impact our community,” per a City of Lawrence press release.
What the concepts will offer
Post 23 is billed as a higher-end neighborhood dining spot with a nod to Fort Benjamin Harrison’s history, and the development site lists the Pizzi family as the owners. Tailwind Cafe plans an aviation theme that leans into its operator’s Lawrence North roots, serving handcrafted coffee, breakfast options and premium ice cream. The Corner at Fort Ben site notes that Comfort Option will anchor the retail side with a showroom focused on customizable, rebuildable mattresses and recovery products tied directly to Foamcraft’s Lawrence manufacturing operations.
What it means for Fort Ben
City leaders and local coverage frame The Corner as one more piece in a broader wave of growth around the Fort Ben neighborhood, designed to pull more people toward Lawrence’s commercial corridor while still protecting nearby green space. WRTV and other outlets have followed the recent slate of projects and Mayor Deb Whitfield’s push for balanced development in the area. Developers say they are still courting additional tenants, and remaining spaces are available for lease as The Corner heads toward its anticipated summer opening.
