A new subdivision with workforce housing may be coming to the west side of Ames.
A group of local developers are in the process of acquiring 17 acres of land at the intersection of Ontario Street and Scholl Road, currently owned by Iowa State University. The site was previously suggested for the Healthy Life Center, a $29 million bond project that was denied in 2019.
The developers would like to build 109 residential units in the subdivision. According to City of Ames documents, they are in the final stages of acquiring the land from Iowa State.
The proposal for the Ontario Workforce Housing Subdivision was brought before the Ames City Council during their Jan. 27 meeting. Though there were no plans to officially approve, the council said they would like to move ahead with the project.
Where would the 109 housing units be?
Current plans have 84 attached housing units on the west side of Scholl Road. Of those units, 30 would be owner-occupied and 54 would be rentals.
The east side of Scholl Road will have 25 detached, owner-occupied units.
The developers will agree to a maximum sale price of $425,000 for all homes in the subdivision and are “emphasizing that focus of this subdivision will be the creation of more affordable and attainable workforce housing in the City of Ames,” city documents said.
Road must be paved to meet city standards
Scholl Road must be reconstructed to meet requirements for the new subdivision.
The developers have proposed to pave Scholl Road at their own cost from Ontario Street north to the railroad tracks.
In return for reconstructing the road, the developers would like Ames to provide a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Rebate incentive, or a fixed-base value for property taxes.
Although the developers are requesting up to 10 years of a TIF incentive, city documents said the developers’ goal is to construct and sell homes as quickly as possible, “therefore their goal is to have enough construction and sale activityto drive a TIF Rebate payoff in five years.”
The Ames Regional Economic Alliance has agreed to the developers preparing and submitting an application for the Iowa Economic Development Authority for Workforce Housing Tax Credits, according to city documents.
What are the next steps?
Since the City Council agreed to support the proposed development, several steps must be taken to make it a reality:
The property must be rezoned to Residential Neighborhood zoning; the developer must lead a meeting with the affected neighborhoods to describe the project; the council must approve the preliminary and final plats for the development; the council must also adopt a TIF Rebate ordinance and approve a development agreement with the developers.
No official timeline has been set for the project.
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: A new housing subdivision may be coming to Ames. What to know:
Reporting by Celia Brocker, Ames Tribune / Ames Tribune
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