A prominent couple from Georgia is set to make history with the grand opening of their new shopping plaza in the City of Fayetteville on Friday morning. Felicia and Winchel Elibert, two business-savvy visionaries, are the first Black couple to purchase land and develop a shopping plaza in Fayetteville. Felicia, originally from LaGrange, and her husband Winchel, from New York, married in 2008 and have been building their ventures together ever since. Winchel owned three barbershops, and Felicia worked as a registered nurse. They combined their skills to create something special together. The plaza is fully leased and includes businesses such as Frida’s Bar and Grill, Southern Fire Kitchen, Salada, Tanzar Nail Bar, Dough Boy Pizza, Smoothie King, and Cleansing Waters Wellness.
Felicia recalled when the inspiration for purchasing the four acres (20,000 sq. ft.) of land began. “Right across from our Smoothie King and Cleansing Waters location in Fayetteville, there was a sign that said land for sale,” she said. “We made a phone call to ask about the land, which was at a good price. We checked with our realtor and were encouraged that this was a really good investment.” Felicia says the vision became clear after talking with Winchel and their realtor about developing a plaza. “We’re not developers, so we learned as things progressed. We had some savings and purchased the land in 2020. After that, things moved quickly. The vision started from there. It took about 3-4 years for it to develop. The last four years have been a journey. It really fell into our lap. Now looking back, we feel we were chosen for this.”
In 2005, Felicia opened the Cleansing Waters Wellness Center. She later expanded to two additional locations, including one in Peachtree City and one in the Kingdom Corners plaza. After meeting with Mayor Johnson, Winchel and Felicia were informed that they are the first African Americans to develop a plaza in the city. “When the mayor took us out to dinner, he told us the historic news and congratulated us. We got goosebumps because we had no idea of that at the time. God chose us for this project. Here we are.”
Winchel and Felicia hope opening the shopping plaza will build generational wealth for their family. “For me, it’s huge,” Felicia said about her excitement with opening the plaza with her husband Winchel. “When you are in the moment, you’re so busy and going and going, you don’t really realize the accomplishment. We haven’t really had a time to sit down and realize the magnitude of how special this truly is.” Winchel said one of the best benefits the plaza offers is better food options, a convenient location, and health benefits to shoppers. “The Matthew 5:5 verse ‘Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth’ came to mind while we were at the groundbreaking ceremony,” Winchel said. “That is when I started to understand the magnitude of us being chosen to do this project. That is why we named the plaza Kingdom Corners. We are blessed.”
The grand opening ceremony is scheduled for 11 a.m. at the Kingdom Corners Plaza at 185 New Hope Rd. Fayetteville Mayor Edward Johnson and two Commissioning Boards of Fayetteville are scheduled to attend the grand opening on Friday, Winchel said.
