Moline is expanding its connection between the WIU campus and community.
That's as a restaurant and more housing come to River Drive.
Angel Figueroa, 19, gets a workout where he lives.
The Black Hawk College student from the Chicago-area moved in a few months ago.
He's what The Mills at Riverbend Commons is all about.
"Go to school, and get it done," he said. "But it's also a way for you to have fun while you do it, too."
Now, the building is adding its first restaurant-bar downstairs.
Happy Joe's PizzaGrille is building a 5,000 square-foot eatery.
That addition will be crucial for the corridor.
"It's huge," said Moline Mayor Scott Raes. "It's all got to fit together. You've got to have the students. You've got to have the restaurants."
The Mills at Riverbend Commons is off to a great start.
All 90 units are occupied. With monthly rent ranging from $500-600, it's serving WIU and other local campuses.
"It's the first truly institutional-grade, student living community introduced to the Quad Cities," said Three Corners Development President Christopher Woods.
The building is housing about 170 interns from Deere, Alcoa and Kone. That partnership is keeping it full during the summer months.
And, there's more on the way.
Three Corners Development plans to add 150 housing units along River Drive in the near future.
"It seems like it took forever to put all the pieces together," said Mayor Raes. "But it's turning out better than what we had expected."
With a sand volleyball court and other amenities, the setting is just right for a college student like Figueroa.
"When you look outside, you see the river," he concluded. "Even if you just walk outside, it's a pleasant view."
It's a view to a future that connects this community.