St. Francis apartments win final city approvals
Units overlooking lake to include parking, pool
A plan to build 200 high-end apartments overlooking Lake Michigan in St. Francis has received final city design and financing assistance approvals.
Bear Development LLC plans to build 11 two- to three-story buildings, totaling 214 apartments, with enclosed parking.
The development would include three additional buildings with garages, as well as a clubhouse with an outdoor swimming pool.
The 11-acre project site is at 4000 S. Lake Drive.
That site is between the 200-unit
Park Shore condominium development at S. Lake Drive and E. Howard Ave. and The Landing condos, with around 300 units, at S. Lake Drive and E. Denton Ave.
Kenosha-based Bear received preliminary city design approval in April.
The Common Council on Tuesday night granted final design approval, said Mayor CoryAnn St. Marie-Carls.
The council also approved an agreement to provide $7.1 million to help finance the development, she said.
New property tax revenue from the apartments, which will carry a $24 million assessed value, will repay the city’s funds by 2036, according to the city’s estimate.
The agreement calls for Bear to complete the apartments by the end of 2019, with construction to begin this year.
The development’s monthly rents would start at around $900, according to city records. It would have apartments ranging from studios to three-bedroom units.
The project plans include a public path that connects Lake Drive to Milwaukee County’s Oak Leaf Trail overlooking Lake Michigan.
“This is a major development in St. Francis’ history,” St. Marie Carls said Wednesday.
Another developer, Long Lake, Minn.-based Roers Investments LLC, last August filed conceptual plans with the city for two buildings, totaling 216 apartments, on 7.5 acres south of The Landing condominiums.
That preliminary $38 million proposal called for a four-story building with 130 units and a three-story building with 86 assisted-living apartments for seniors.