I haven’t written anything about the Sand Hill Farm project in a while. Not because it’s stagnant, but more because of being too busy with it! The basic idea of a mixed use development hasn’t changed, but the path towards that continues to be a bit bumpy… Some of this has been here before, but for new readers, I’ll reiterate.
Last year, the Stellar competition was supposed to be our “in” for IHCDA Tax Credit Housing. When we didn’t get Stellar, I had multiple meetings with IHCDA, which indicated they were eager to help, but we just didn’t meet the threshold needed for a project. In discussions with Town leaders, we decided that the need was immediate and we needed to do something. The Town will be competing for Stellar again this year, but the changes to the program mean that the funding wouldn’t come through until 2019 and that’s too late.
I have gone through the process to have the eastern portion of the project annexed. I have been through the BZA and gotten a Special Use Variance allowing multifamily housing on the property. I have worked through MCEDC to secure Region Cities funding for the project. I have formed a new LLC (Culver Sand Hill Farm LLC) and transferred the eastern portion of the site to that entity. I’ve had multiple meetings with accountants and banks on how best to structure the project. From there, it became an issue of defining what the project would be.
I had discussions with the Town about doing a small townhome project, but the dollars didn’t work. It wouldn’t have been enough to justify the Regional Cities money and didn’t really fit what the goals were. We are now proceeding down the path to create a 24 unit apartment building. The sketches I have included here are the preliminaries for that. Final designs may change, but they’re what pricing is currently based on.
In order to meet the cost goals for the project, the Town has agreed to provide infrastructure. That’s allowing the rental rates to be reduced and hit some of our target audience. This will bring in water, sewer, streets, street lights, sidewalks, etc. to the project. They will also be providing a Tax Abatement for the project.
The public comment periods on this were a bit harsh. Always disheartening when you find out who your friends aren’t. Most of the vitriol was directed at the Town Council, but some got personal. That was despite the all of the employers we were targeting appearing and speaking for the project. This is somewhat baffling since affordable housing has been the top request in all the surveys from back to the Comprehensive Plan. It continues to be the top concern in the Stellar surveys. Since those meetings it has been nice that there have been a lot of people providing off the record, positive comments to me. It’s unfortunate that they were unable to speak publicly for fear the naysayers would shun them and their businesses.
Currently we’re working down two tracks in order to make this happen. The first is with the Town to find the most economical route to provide access to the current and future projects on the site. This is being handled by the Town’s engineer with input from the Town Manager, Utilities Superintendent and myself. The second is working to bring the building plan in at or under budget. That is proving to be challenging, but the budget has been set by what the banks will support and what has been approved for the Regional Cities money. Building a project with Market Rate construction costs, but renting it at below Market Rate is difficult. In typical fashion, the banks only want to lend money when you don’t need it.
The conversations with the Town and the buzz through the community has been fascinating. The need is there, but everyone has different ideas of how to address it. Several have mentioned the tiny house craze. Enough so that I will probably include that in my PUD as an option. It seems like a reasonable possibility. Mostly, I’m looking at how to most efficiently use the property. I think working on the density is probably the key. Tiny houses might be a component, but I’m still thinking multifamily and zero lot line construction may make more sense here.
More to come!
Tiny house image via Cass Community Social Services
I’ve been a little slow getting things up on the site this summer. There’s been a lot going on. Thanks to the Wabash Plain Dealer for the picture from the event.
Howard Kaler, General Manager of the Charley Creek Inn, tells me that the Courtyard has been an enormous success. There are already over 20 different events scheduled in the Courtyard in July. We’re pretty proud of it. You can see additional pictures here. There are some additional pictures elsewhere in the blog showing the construction.
I recommend that you check it out if you’re in the area. Heck, personally I think it’s worth a special trip!
Guest Writer, Sam Socorro submitted this article. Thanks Sam! – Kevin
Whether you’re planning to build your home, a shop, garage, business or if you’re planning on renovating, you might be tempted to save yourself some money by doing the work on your own or with helpful friends and family. If you’re a skilled tradesperson, this idea can actually benefit your savings account in the end, but if your expertise lies outside of construction, you could be setting yourself up for disaster. When building or handling a renovation, there will undoubtedly be interruptions, issues and unforeseen complications that the average person isn’t equipped to handle efficiently. Skilled tradespeople are worth their weight in gold when it comes to having a project done properly, up to code, and within a set budget and time frame. Here are some reasons why researching and hiring a local construction company can be your best bet.
Most construction companies can show you examples of projects that they’ve completed in a book or online, but if your company is local, you have an even better way of determining that their work is up to your standards. Ask them what projects they’re either working on or have completed that you might be able to take a gander at. You can ask them for references as well, and talk to their customers who can give you advice on what they wish they’d known before starting, or about what they loved about their chosen construction company. Doing some background digging can reassure you that hiring a professional is the way to go for your building project.
With a professional construction company, you’re more likely to have information before or when you need it, and you’ll be kept in the loop throughout the project. A good crew will be able to answer your questions or direct you to someone who can, and that person should be regularly available to you. They’re going to be busy, but you should anticipate having your messages returned within 24 hours.
Hiring out your job means that your time can be spent at your regular job and your vacation time can be just that; vacation. A construction company will have the knowledge and experience to complete projects in a timely manner and that will ultimately save you money in the end. Hiring professionals means that your project will be completed far faster than if you attempt to tackle it yourself.
If you haven’t had the experience working in this trade, running into even a common problem will in all likelihood completely derail you. A professional, by comparison, will have run into similar problems during his or her years of employment and will quickly and efficiently come up with a plan to correct any issues and get the job done in spite of setbacks.
Even if you do understand the ins and outs of your project fairly well, do you understand the local bylaws and building codes? Doing a project that doesn’t fall within the guidelines of your county can cause you to spend a lot more time and money on the project than you originally budgeted for. A professional construction company will have a good grasp of what falls within the county guidelines and can help correct your plans so that there are no future issues with your neighbours, town, or MD.
You may be a jack of all trades and fairly handy, but hiring a professional construction company means that you gain the expertise of a variety of trades. The construction company will have access to electricians, plumbers, dry wallers, painters, carpenters, and any other industry tradesperson who is required for the job. Even if they don’t retain people in every trade on their payroll, they will have far easier access to retaining these people for the job when the time comes for their particular skills.
It makes good sense to hire a professional construction company for all of your building needs to save you time, stress and money in the end.
This article was written by Sam Socorro from Steam Shower Store. Sam has been writing articles for over 10 years and is a commanding voice in the health and fitness community with her articles high in demand.