City Redevelopment Commission Updates on READI Grant Project for Water Street Townhouses

Wednesday, March 6, 2024 at 9:09 AM

City Attorney Sean Surrisi updated members of the Plymouth Redevelopment Commission Tuesday evening on the City’s $520,000 READI Grant for residential development in the 200 block of Water Street.

This is a project that has been discussed with the Commission before and they pledged their support with the 20% public funding match required by the READI Grant.

The Water Street Townhome development would create 10 to 12 rental townhomes in the city parking lot at the northwest corner of Water and Garro Streets. It would also include a retail unit at the corner with an apartment above it.

Surrisi said the single-family home immediately to the north of the parking lot is currently a rental unit and the homeowner has expressed some interest in selling the property to the city for the project. He said discussions are just beginning.

Next week the city attorney will be meeting with the city’s bond counsel, Lisa Lee from Ice Miller, and Heidi Amspaugh from Baker Tilly the city’s Financial Advisors on a potential bond issuance from TIF #2 which would help support the project. READI Grants provide up to 20% of the total project cost. The $520,000 is less than the 20% requested. The grant requires at least a 20% local match from public funds and donating the city-owned land for the development could be used as part of the public match. The remaining 60% comes from private funding. Project developer Kevin Berger from Easterday Construction in Culver would make that match.

The latest cost estimate for the project is $3.4 million.

There was a question from commission president Mike Miley about the flood zone and the city attorney said the flood zone actually ends in the city parking lot on the east side of Water Street.

The initial project had the city acquiring both single-family homes, but Surrisi said the development can work with the acquisition of only the home to the south. Parking for the townhomes would be behind them in the city parking lot along with on-street parking.

City Attorney Sean Surrisi said he would bring a more formal update to the Redevelopment Commission at the April meeting.