SHEBOYGAN, Wis. (WHBL) -- Sheboygan city officials have given their approval for construction on a new apartment complex in the South Pier.
The city council approved both the ground lease and development agreements with South Pier LLC to build a number of rental townhouses on several acres of green space in the South Pier. Mayor Mike Vandersteen says the region needs more residents that will shop and live in South Pier. "There's been a few businesses that haven't been able to quite make it, and I really think this is going to change the dynamics and make that retail much more viable there."
Former alderman Don Hammond worked heavily on getting the project approved, and says this is part of a longer term goal of making downtown more residential. "Whether it's the Boston Store site, the Convent Site, now South Pier, getting bodies to the downtown is critical to its survival. So this is going to be transformational for a generation." He says the problem is that there's a lot of open positions in Sheboygan County, but that the city itself has run out of rental space to accommodate the young professionals that are needed to fill them.
Hammond says the city wants to attract and keep young people to the downtown. "They want to be in the urban areas, they want to be downtown, they want to be next to restaurants, shopping nightlife, those sorts of things. So having this down there keeps them here."
The project is being funded by both the developer and the city. The city is offering $1.7 million in TIF funding that's being matched by the company. Total cost for the development is going to be around $11.8 million.
That funding from the city will be delivered in two phases that coincide with the construction plans for the project. South Pier will start Phase 1 in August and build 52 units with occupancy available in May 2017. Phase 2 will include the construction of 36 units and will begin in August 2017 with occupancy in May 2018.