This land could have become Brunswick County's Mayfaire. Now it’s for sale.

Part of a Brunswick County property that was once considered for the construction of a Mayfaire-like development is on the market.

According to a real estate listing, roughly 82 acres of land located in the 3900 block of N.C. 211 near St. James is for sale. The property is listed for over $7.2 million.

The future of these few parcels of land has been a topic of discussion in the county for nearly a decade.

In 2015, Malcolm Jones III, a Florida-based developer, proposed developing this land and some additional adjacent parcels, totaling 135 acres together, into a master-planned community composed of two sections: Mirasol East and Mirasol West. Mirasol was pitched as “Your place in the sun,” and looked to bring hundreds of homes and apartments, as well as a grocery-store-anchored shopping center and several other commercial outparcels.

In June 2015, the Brunswick County Planning Board approved preliminary plans for the development – which would have consisted of 200 single-family lots, 415 multi-family units and 28 acres of commercial space on 138 acres of land.

In a 2017 StarNews story, Jones’ real estate agent, Nicholas Silivanch, noted it would be a "power-center," and drew a comparison to Wilmington’s Mayfaire Town Center, a sprawling development with a host of retail, restaurants and apartments.

But the project never came to fruition. The 2015 approval was good for five years and has since expired.

Silivanch said his firm marketed the property to builders and chain stores for years but saw little interest. In 2022, he told the StarNews he believed it was a timing issue, with many builders and developers still recovering from the housing market crash.

When visions of Mirasol began to fade, the land was eyed as a potential industrial site. Those plans were also nixed after a zoning change could have resulted in water contamination for nearby towns.

Now, part of the land is for sale. The property is zoned for commercial low-density development. According to a real estate listing, some 26 acres on the front of the available land could be used for commercial development or apartments along N.C. 211. The remaining 56 acres, the listing details, includes a roughly 15-acre lake and around 40 acres of developable land that could be used for housing.

STAY CONNECTED: Keep up with the area’s latest Brunswick County news by signing up for the Brunswick Today newsletter and following us on Facebook and Instagram.

The listing also hints at a possible RV park planned for the site, and a floating restaurant and bar planned on adjacent land.

The site sits across from St. James and near Southport. According to Brunswick County property records, Jones is still the owner of the parcels.

Jamey Cross covers Brunswick County for the StarNews. Reach her at jbcross@gannett.com or message her on Twitter/X @jameybcross.