Jackson, the former head of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., said Tuesday afternoon that a development agreement with the city still needs to be negotiated and financing finalized, but he anticipates his Ventra Group LLC to complete construction in late 2018 on a 104,000-square-foot former Detroit Water and Sewerage Department property.

"This is a tough project and it's not a done deal," Jackson said. "We have a lot of Ts to cross and Is to dot."

Plans include a brewery, food processing and production facility, retail space, as well as a food storage and preservation facility and restaurants, according to a City Council document. There would also be business accelerator opportunities for small and emerging companies.

The property sits on a little more than 6 acres. It was the subject of a request for proposals last year.

Jackson said there have been discussions with an undisclosed brewery for "a considerable amount of time" and that the food accelerator space is expected to take about 10,000-15,000 square feet, but the layout of the rest of the space has not yet been determined.