A seven-story mixed-use 121 residential unit development with ground-floor commercial space is coming to Newport’s Monmouth Street.
The development was approved for the vacant lot to the east of the city’s new public parking garage, which is currently under construction. The garage and mixed-use project is being built on the same block—bordered by Monmouth, York, Fourth and Fifth streets—that hotel operator Shaun Pan is building two Hilton brand hotels—TRU and Home 2 Suites. Those hotels are also currently under construction.
“This is, this is a huge, huge move forward for us, with the city’s parking garage nearly complete and Mr. Pans’ hotel is well under construction, this is the next step in Monmouth Street’s revitalization,” said Newport Assistant City Administrator Brian Steffen.
The Newport Commission approved the new project at a special meeting on Sept. 29.
“This particular site was a gap in the streetscape for the last 30 years nearly and this will bring activation to that block and hopefully connect what we’ve always talked about with Newport on the Levee and the remainder of Monmouth Street,” Steffen said.
Cincinnati-based Urban Sites is the company developing the mixed-use project. President of Urban Sites Kate Greene spoke during the meeting about the company. She said the majority of its portfolio was concentrated in Over-The-Rhine, but its biggest project has been The Hayden, completed in 2023 in Covington with 133 units.
Urban Sites Director of Development Clare Healy said the new project will sit on the final half-acre of the site with the hotels and parking garage.
At the north end of the site, on 4th Street, Urban Sites is saving about 4,400 square feet of space for bar or restaurant use.
“We talked about the missing link in this chain, and commercial is such a big part of getting that continuity from The Levee down into the business district,” Healy said. “Additionally, with the arrival of the new hotel next door, we will be having a lot of people come and creating that built-in demand for our restaurant space.”
They are also saving about 4,200 additional square feet of commercial space on the 5th Street corner of the building for a retailer.
The residential component of the project is proposed to have studio, one and two-bedroom apartments. Resident amenities include a gym, a space for bike storage on the first floor, a coworking space, and a rooftop patio and lounge area equipped with a fridge, sink, and other amenities, allowing residents to host gatherings. The main entrance to the lobby would be on Monmouth Street.
Steffen said the project was very complicated.
He said the deal goes back to 2019, when the city entered into a development agreement with Pan and subsequently locked in PILOT rates for the remainder of the project. A PILOT payment, which stands for “Payment in Lieu of Taxes,” is an annual payment made to a government entity to compensate for lost property tax revenue.
In this particular case, the PILOT rate was locked and set at $6 per $1,000 for the site. All of the framework for that agreement was preset in that 2019 agreement. Steffen said that if property valuations go up, the PILOT rate increases, so it’s not locked in at a single number. So
The city also has a state TIF. A state TIF refers to “Tax Increment Financing,” a public financing tool authorized by state law that uses future increases in property tax revenue from a designated area to fund public infrastructure and improvements within that area.
Steffen said it was important that the entire site (parking garage, hotels and the new mixed-use project) gets built out to preserve that TIF and the financing incentive that goes back to pay for the city’s parking garage.
Healy said that they have not yet hired an outside architect or begun working with a design firm for the project. Urban Sites will work with the city’s design review board to ensure the building’s design is cohesive with the surrounding area, and those conversations are likely to begin at the end of the year.
She said they are also working closely with Pan to align construction with his hotel project. Healy said there would be about six to eight months of time where the hotel would be open, and the mixed-use project would still be under construction.
“That density in our community is not only going to help this building and the vendors that are in the building itself, it’s going to radiate through the community, and it’s going to strengthen us,” said Newport Mayor Tom Guidugli Jr.
