St. Charles may be adding some apartment units to its downtown landscape in the coming years.
The city is currently considering a proposal from a local developer to turn a long-vacant downtown property at Illinois Street and Route 31 into a 12-unit apartment building with a parking garage.
The matter came to a Committee of the Whole meeting on May 4, at which members of the St. Charles City Council heard about the proposed project and asked questions about the pitch.
St. Charles has long been working to develop this segment of its downtown. This parcel, which is less than an acre, represents
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the last piece in its ongoing First Street Redevelopment project.Original plans approved in 2006 for the lot envisioned three- or four-story buildings with ground-floor commercial space and upper-level offices or residential space, per the city, which sought proposals for the project from September through February.
The downtown lot just west of the Fox River has been appraised at $340,000, per the city, and received only one formal plan from a developer. That developer group included local developer Bob Rasmussen, along with Rick Dahl, Ryan Corcoran and Ryan Samuelson.
Their proposal is for a four-story building, with an 11-space parking garage on the ground floor and 12 apartment units on the upper three floors. With an estimated construction cost of a little over $3 million, the developer is requesting the city transfer ownership of the property at no cost and to provide tax increment financing, or TIF, funding for streetscape improvements for the project.
A TIF district is a sort of economic development incentive, in which the value of a property is essentially frozen, and the extra or “increment” taxes created by developing the property go into a special fund used to pay for costs related to improving the area. The lot being eyed for development is part of the city’s First Street TIF district.
Per a city presentation, those streetscape improvements would be in the range of $75,000 to $100,000. The development is projected to generate around $100,000 annually in property tax revenue.
Should it move forward, the project is expected to break ground in November, and be completed near the end of 2027.
“For me personally, this is kind of a big deal, because this is the last parcel of something I started in 2004,” Rasmussen, who has long been involved in the First Street Redevelopment project, said at the Committee of the Whole meeting. He noted that the lot has sat vacant for many years.
Saying he wants to build “a beautiful building that fits into the St. Charles streetscape,” Rasmussen said he is working with architect Dan Marshall on a project that looks “a little bit historic, not modern.” It’s also set to have some green space around it and a wide streetscape.
Rent for the units would range from $1,900 to $2,400, per the city’s presentation on the development, plus a $125 per month parking fee.
Rasmussen said they’re looking to get the council’s input before proceeding on designing the building and determining the exact costs for the project, noting that the project may turn out not to be feasible because of the cost.
That’s why, he said, the developers are asking for the property at no cost and for the city to pay for the streetscaping.
At Monday’s meeting, the plan and preliminary designs were generally well-received by the City Council.
Some of the council’s members, however, expressed concern about and an interest in further discussion regarding the developer’s financial asks of the city.
Rasmussen, however, defended the request at the meeting, urging the city’s support in order to keep the ball rolling on the development of the site.
“I would’ve made you money already, had I been able to build this building four-and-a-half years ago,” Rasmussen said at the meeting. “I don’t think there’s going to be another developer with the fortitude that we have to get it done in a timely manner and make the money we need to make to create the positive TIF that we need to create.”
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