Community members, business folks and local officials gathered on the rolling hills of what will soon become Roundabout Oxford RV and Water Resort Friday for the official groundbreaking ceremony.

Shovels held by the developers and local officials dug into the ground, turning up the first dirt moved on the 85-acre site located off Highway 6 West and County Road 105.

The resort is being developed by Oxonians Jay and Cris Hughes and Drs. Andrew and Alison Ross.

The idea was born while Jay Hughes sat in Dr. Andrew Ross’ dentist chair last June, and according to Hughes, the group hopes to have the resort in less than a year.

“Our goal is to have the first inner tube floating in this lazy river next spring for the first home SEC baseball game in March,” Hughes said Friday.

After greeting the 75 or so guests at the groundbreaking, Hughes thanked many, from local and state government officials to designers to architects, and especially, his wife, and partners.

“We’re the four who dared to dream big and shared a common passion to make this dream a reality and share it with others,” Hughes said. “For us today, the word groundbreaking stands for more than just breaking new ground. It stands for a groundbreaking project that will be a new destination for local staycations and tourists for years to come.”

Roundabout Oxford will have 150 paved spots for RVs with full connections and be filled with amenities and activities, including shaded playgrounds, pools and water slides, a lazy river, hot tub, fitness center, walking trail, yoga/zen garden, shuffleboard and pickleball courts, picnic areas, walking trail, bonfire areas, a business center, a dog park, golf cart rentals, bathrooms and laundry facilities.

“This project is a perfect example of a team between state and county officials, the county building department, the founders, architects, engineers, designers, marketers, friends, family and ‘the Facebook,’” he said. “We all engaged in a thorough debate and a deliberate process and design all with a Jay Hughes rocket timeline.”

Hughes said bid packages went out last week, and the developers plan to award the construction contracts on the infrastructure next Monday.

“Many different companies will be coordinating parts and pieces and working daily throughout the summer, fall and winter, six days a week,” Hughes said. “This will include a new deceleration turning lane on Highway 6, a new connector road right here out to County Road 105, that is also going to be the new entrance and exit for Wink Tumbling Academy.”

Also speaking at the ceremony were Lafayette County Economic Development Foundation CEO Ryan Miller, Lafayette County Supervisor and Board President Brent Larson, and co-founder, Andrew Ross.

“If you ever say something to Jay, and he believes in it, you’re not going to say it twice,” Ross said of his partner. “He’s going to get things moving. But it took a lot of people, and a lot of joint effort, and we are grateful for that.

“It’s a privilege to live in Lafayette County, in Oxford, Mississippi. I really feel like it’s the oasis of Mississippi, and everybody wants to be here.”