A Tennessee developer has signed up to build about 300 rental homes as part of a big mixed-use development in Allen.

The Watters Creek project is under construction at North Central Expressway and Bethany Drive.

Southern Land Co. of suburban Nashville – which already has an apartment project in Keller and a neighborhood under construction in McKinney – will put residential units on top of shops and restaurants in two buildings in the 52-acre project.

The concept is similar to the West Village in Dallas. Construction began on the project last year; the first buildings will open next spring.

"Southern Land Co. has been brought in as our residential partner," said Terry Montesi, chief executive of Watters Creek developer Trademark Property Co. "They are a super high-quality firm – the antithesis of the big production builder."

Southern Land, founded in 1986, is based in the Nashville suburb of Franklin. The company builds single-family home neighborhoods, apartments, and office and retail space.

Just north of Allen in McKinney, Southern Land is developing an 800-acre home project called Tucker Hill. The development, on State Highway 380, will have more than 2,100 houses.

In Keller, Southern Land is building 177 apartments in the Arthouse mixed-use project.

"We like mixed-use communities where people can live, work and play," executive vice president David Wilson said Wednesday. "We thought that Trademark had put together the concept for a great project in Allen.

"We realized that Allen is a very desirable place to live with a lot of job creation."

The first apartments in Watters Creek will be ready next spring.

Retailers in the Watters Creek mixed-use development include a Market Street supermarket, P.F. Chang restaurant, Borders books, Ann Taylor Loft and Eddie Bauer. An eight-screen Studio Movie Grill cinema and a 135-room hotel are also part of the project.