Apartments planned on ‘Cargominium’ site
The “Cargominium” apartment building made of shipping containers is gone, demolished before a single resident moved in.
In its place on Old Leonard Avenue will rise a 10-unit apartment building to serve the same population ― those in transition or at risk of homelessness.
“We’re excited it can rise from the ashes, and we’re excited the mission can be fulfilled and we can continue to help those in need,” said Brian White, chief financial officer for the Opportunity Zone Development Group.
The Columbus company, founded by White and Chief Executive Officer Graham Allison, acquired the Cargominium complex in March, intending to complete the unorthodox development built of 54 shipping containers.
After examining the structure, however, Allison and White decided instead to demolish it and start anew.
“We had testing and inspection done, and it was evident the quality of the construction wasn’t safe and not acceptable for moving forward,” White said.
Asked what was deficient, White cited “the welding, the foundations, the shipping containers themselves; it was a little bit of everything.”
The containers were crushed and recycled, and the developers hope to start soon on a 13,600-square-foot, two-story apartment building that will house 10 apartments. Each apartment will include five bedrooms for low-income residents, including many who are transitioning out of addiction, prison or homeless shelters.
The Opportunity Zone Development Group is partnering with the East Side nonprofit agency Nothing Into Something Real Estate, which also had spearheaded the Cargominium project.
“We knew we needed fresh new minds and hearts at the table to bring this project to fruition, and we couldn’t have done it without” Opportunity Zone Development Group, said Michele Reynolds, chief executive officer of Nothing Into Something Real Estate.
We “found a better way to bring an affordable-housing solution into this community,” she added.
Reynolds said in a previous article that work stopped on the Cargominium project after problems arose with its developer, AES Development, and its general contractor, Chelsi Technologies.
Chelsi Technologies President Barry Cummings defended the project’s structural integrity and said it wasn’t finished because Nothing Into Something Real Estate ran out of money.
Cummings noted that the city had regularly inspected the structure and that it had been designed and engineered by the prominent Columbus architectural firm Moody Nolan, which also is a partner on the replacement building.
“It was completely and utterly sound. You know they know what they’re doing,” Cummings said. “For a lay person to say it was structurally unsound is not correct. … We had all the qualifications to make this happen. We just didn’t have enough money.”
Allison and White are funding the new $5.8 million complex largely through an Opportunity Zone fund, which allows investors to defer or potentially eliminate capital gains taxes in 52 Columbus neighborhoods. In addition, the project received loans from Finance Fund, IFF and the Affordable Housing Trust.
Allison noted that two-thirds of the investors are from outside Ohio. They will nonetheless benefit from a tax break that Ohio provides for Opportunity Zone investments because Allison and White designed a way to sell Ohio Opportunity Zone tax credits.
Also working on the project are KO Builders, Studio 112 Architecture, New Avenue Architects & Engineers, Moody Engineering and Loewendick Demolition Contractors.
White and Allison said they hope to complete the building by the end of the year, allowing tenants to move in early next year. jweiker@dispatch.com @Jimweiker