SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – They hope it will be a hub for arts and entertainment, new jobs, and new housing. Six years in the making, Santa Fe's much anticipated Midtown re-development is close to its first phase of work. "We sort of saw the opportunity to acquire these buildings and do something adaptive; very sustainable, so we're not knocking anything down, we're renovating all these buildings, and essentially making lemonade out of old lemons," said Phillip Gesue, real estate developer for the Aspect Media Village. Story continues below News: Albuquerque police officer indicted on charges related to soliciting sexual favors Education: Despite hot classroom complaints, Albuquerque parents want school calendar to stay the same News: Driver arrested for DWI after chase with New Mexico State Police Events: What’s happening around New Mexico November 22-28 In the geographic heart of Santa Fe, between Cerrillos Road and St. Michaels Drive, the city is moving full-steam ahead on its Midtown Development Project that's been in planning since 2018. "They wanted a mixed-use, urban district that would attract and retain actually young people to stay in Santa Fe because it was a great neighborhood for them to be," said Daniel Hernandez, director of the Santa Fe Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency. The goals include industry, entertainment, and housing; but first up, is a film studio expansion. This first phase of the Midtown Development Project deals with 11 acres of a total of a 64-acre site. "We're going to combine it with a private studio that we already own right next door and create northern New Mexico's largest film studio, which is going to be called Aspect Media Village," Gesue said. The village will also contain apartments, a restaurant and cafe, and a movie theater. "That mixture of uses really creates like its own small town or village," Gesue said. Developers said it's about a $100 million; but the ambitious plan is not quite off the ground yet, as Santa Fe City Councilors still need to sign off on the idea. Project leaders said the studio is a critical first step. "It will attract other developers and investors to Midtown. That's what we want," Hernandez said. It's an opportunity project leaders say they don't to miss. "If they don't do it here they're going to do it somewhere else in the state. And so of course we want to have it here in our hometown," said Jennifer LaBar-Tapia, Santa Fe Film Commissioner. "The whole concept here is to try to attract more bigger shows to Santa Fe and really create a world-class studio that's not just good for Santa Fe but that's on a national level," Gesue said. If they get the green light from city council, the developer said the first phase of combining the studios would take one to two years.