Newport officials approved up to $100 million in industrial revenue bonds, also known as IRBs, on Monday to help finance the 342-unit housing development at the long-vacant former steel mill site along Route 9.
The IRB will help developer PLK Communities in financing acquisition, construction, installation and improvements for the project at 910 Lowell St. The city acts as a conduit issuing the IRB. It is not the city’s debt, and it does not affect the city’s bond capacity.
“This is great news, because this bond order tonight means the project is moving forward, and hopefully we’ll see some extra construction soon,” Newport Assistant City Manager Brian Steffen said.
Last March, PLK Communities proposed 195 townhome-style apartments with a commercial component; the developer has increased that number to 342 units at the city’s request for higher density. The location is about 17.23 acres along Route 9 and has sat vacant for around 25 years.
PLK Communities acquired the property late last summer and has been working on robust site remediation.
“This is a very polluted site, and we’re just happy to see this project move forward,” said Newport Commissioner Aaron Sutherland. “I know that there’s been a massive investment in getting this site clean, and I’m happy to see this going forward with not only the original amount that you guys were planning, but now we have 342 new units, and with a housing shortage, the more housing there is, the more supply there is, the better it is for cost.”
Understanding NKY’s housing shortage
A study of housing in Northern Kentucky has revealed troubling trends for housing in the region, with the largest need being for “workforce housing” for households earning between $15 and $25 per hour, with monthly housing costs between $500 and $1,500. The region needs about 3,000 more housing units to provide for people within that income range, according to the study. The demand for one- to two-bedroom rentals and owned properties consistently exceeds their supply, while supply for three and four-bedroom properties consistently exceeds demand. The study suggests that the region needs to build 6,650 housing units to support economic development in the next five years, which equates to 1,330 units per year. Read more here.
All of the city commissioners and the mayor voted to approve the IRB on May 18, except Newport Commissioner Ken Rechtin. Rechtin said he opposed the development in the past and will continue to oppose it, reasoning that the project could be even more dense than the 342 proposed units. He also said that the area is not walkable.
“The intention was never that that would be a residential development,” Rechtin said. “I don’t believe so. I’m going to continue to oppose it. And as far as density goes, there’s 17 acres at the Ovation site. The 17 acres there is going to have many, many more units than the 17 acres at this site.”
Newport Mayor Tom Guidugli Jr. said that the site was challenged, and the amount of mitigation that occurred could mean waiting 40 years to develop it or taking a need that is known in the community, which is housing, and fill that need today.
As part of the project, PLK has agreed to donate $150,000 to the city for tree planting. Newport announced last February that the federal government had rescinded its $1.2 million tree-grant from the Arbor Day Foundation. Through that grant, the city planned to plant 1,000 trees.
According to Jim Parsons of Keating Muething & Klekamp, the $150,000 payment to the city for the tree program is included as part of the lease obligation.
For more information on the anticipated unit types and their cost, click here.
