WCPO 9's Jackie Bauer covers Warren County. If you have a story that you'd like Jackie to look into or a news tip, email her at jackie@wcpo.com.
MIDDLETOWN, Ohio — Work is set to begin next week on apartments that are part of the Renaissance Pointe development, a more than $200 million project at the southeast corner of State Route 122 and Union Road in Middletown.
At the center of the development is a new hockey arena and event center designed to bring entertainment, a minor league hockey team and hundreds of thousands of visitors to the region each year.
WATCH: What we know about the proposed hockey arena and event space
The proposed facility will feature three ice rinks and an anchor event space capable of seating up to 5,000 people.
Officials said the United States Hockey League has expressed an interest in the facility as the home for a new expansion team. If approved, the team would call Middletown home, with the arena hosting 32 home games annually.
Beyond hockey, the facility will function as a versatile event space capable of hosting trade shows, graduations, concerts and other live performances.
"And this project could be huge for our area, and it will be huge for our area," Middletown City Communications Manager Ken Brown said.
The mixed-use development will transform the lot into more than 200 apartments surrounded by hotels, restaurants and retail.
"I think the estimate is that this project could bring upwards of 425,000 people annually into Middletown, and that kind of traffic is not only good for the event center in the arena," Brown said. "It's good for our restaurants. It's good for our small businesses, and we want to get them out here into our urban core as well to experience downtown Middletown."
Developers at Woodard Development describe the project as bringing an epicenter between two metro areas.
"50-acre classic mix, used development amenities and experiences to Middletown that simply don't exist today," Woodard Development's Todd Duplain said.
Duplain said the corridor's potential has been a long time coming.
"I've been in real estate 26 years, and every one of those years we talk about Dayton and Cincinnati conversion, only in the last four or five years have we started to see that actually physically take place," Duplain said.
Renaissance Pointe is estimated to create more than 600 full-time equivalent positions and generate more than $1.5 million in tax revenue each year.
The Warren County Commissioners voted 2-1 to commit a $12.5 million credit enhancement toward the event center.
Middletown City Council followed with its own resolution on May 5, 2026, pledging a matching $12.5 million credit enhancement.
"The arena and event space at Renaissance Pointe is the cornerstone of this project and will drive visitors from across the region into our city," City Manager Ashley Combs said. "Every step forward in this development solidifies Middletown as a destination city. This is the type of project that can drive new life and business into Middletown. We are extremely grateful that the Warren County Commissioners see the same value and promise in this project that we identified early in the process."
The City of Middletown has also committed infrastructure support for the project, including public works and public safety improvements.
The arena is expected to be open by the start of 2028.
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