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GREENSBORO — Jim and Steve Jones, the brothers who own the former North State Chevrolet property, don’t plan to stop with a $10 million, high-end apartment complex downtown.

That project, formally announced Wednesday, will occupy 4.2 acres in an area bounded by North Eugene, Smith and Edgeworth streets and Battleground Avenue.

But they’re also talking about how to develop the rest of their property, a 1.5-acre tract next to NewBridge Bank Park, the baseball stadium that opened in 2005.

“That’s next,” Steve Jones said of the adjacent property. “We’ll either do retail and commercial or more residential. That depends on demand.”

If they opt for a mixed-use project, the Joneses said, they would convert the former showroom and garage at a cost of about $3 million.

If they go with residential, the sprawling building would come down and more apartment buildings would go up.

That development could follow in two to two-and-a-half years. Or further down the road, the site could produce “something special,” Steve Jones said. “Something Greensboro hasn’t seen in a long time — a mid- to high-rise building.”

But first things first, say the brothers, who’ve seen various plans for the property make it to the drawing board but never materialize.

For now, they’re focused on what they call the Greenway at Fisher Park Apartments, 196 units of high-end, one- and two-bedroom units.

Site development began Tuesday and the first tenants should move in next summer, with all the buildings completed by September. Rent prices have not been set.

“We have been working for the past six years to bring a residential project to downtown that raises the bar for urban living,” Jim Jones said in a statement.

“This project was worth the wait.”

Plans call for five, three-story brick buildings, a clubhouse with rooftop terrace and bar, a saltwater pool and covered terrace, a large fitness club and yoga studio, and a big-screen sports lounge and bar.

The project takes its name from the nearby Fisher Park neighborhood and the Downtown Greenway, a four-mile, $26 million recreational loop around the center city which will pass the property along Smith Street.

Local leaders call the complex the first major new construction project in the northwest section of downtown since the ballpark opened.

“It represents a significant development in downtown and meets a broader goal of adding more residential units,” said Ed Wolverton, president and CEO of Downtown Greensboro Inc. “It is clearly aligned with where the market stands today. We are seeing significant growth in demand for apartments.”

Wolverton referenced the various projects considered for that site — there have been at least three — since the Chevrolet dealership closed in 2004.

“Clearly, there were other projects that have evaluated and examined the site,” he said. “I think this development partnership is well-suited to take it on.”

The developers are Bellemeade Development, which is the Jones brothers’ company, and Lomax Properties, which will build and manage the complex.

The most ambitious project considered for the site was called Bellemeade Village, a complex of apartments, condos, offices and shops proposed by the Joneses. But they pulled the plug on the plan in 2006.

Today, they have no regrets that project didn’t work.

Said Steve Jones, “It would have ended up being (an economic) casualty.”

Contact Donald W. Patterson at 373-7027 or don.patterson@news-record.com