Redevelopment Commission passes apartments at Elkhart Foundry site
ELKHART, Indiana-- The City of Elkhart is one step closer to luxury apartments downtown.
The revised development plan passed through the Redevelopment Commission meeting unanimously
Developer Flaherty & Collins is hoping to break ground at the former Foundry Site the first week of September.
“It’s going to add more excitement to downtown and make Elkhart a more fun place to be,” says Flaherty & Collins developer Brian Prince.
The proposed 200 luxury apartments plus retail space on the river will now go to the city council for final approval.
The cost off the $29 million dollar project is mostly covered by the developers but requires a $4.6 million dollar investment from the city.
The project has received a bit of push back from several community members.
Jack Cittadine owns the York Woods Center, an apartment complex a couple minutes from the proposed site. He says he's a community activist who hopes to stop the project.
“It’s a sad day for the tax payers of Elkhart. I have no problem with building apartments there if somebody wants to use his money, not the tax payer’s money,” says Cittadine.
The developers say over time, that money will come back to the city in a big way.
“For this particular project it’s aimed at more of a market rate housing to attract more young professional’s millennials and even empty nesters who want more of a livable, walkable environment in the downtown,” says Prince.
The plans will go before the city council for a first reading at next week’s meeting. If all goes according to plan, the council will vote at the August 7th meeting.