TWG Development is proposing an 138-unit apartment complex along Webster St. on the city’s west side.

Before the project can begin, TWG needs to have the properties at 837 Webster and 875 Webster (photo) rezoned from Light Industrial to Business General to qualify for workforce housing tax credits. The application deadline from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA) is July 3.

The motion to rezone was approved at Monday’s Common Council meeting and now moves on to a special Plan Commission meeting next Monday.

The Indianapolis-based firm specializes in multi-family housing developments that it manages and maintains for a minimum of 15 years after construction completion, according to TWG Development Director Marisa Conatser.

Mayor Tom DeBaun questioned Conatser on the 15-year term and what happens after that time frame. Conatser said the 15-year term is required by the IHCDA and the application process starts again to continue receiving tax credits that can be used for remodels or updates to the property.

The proposed “Eight37 Lofts” will consist of 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom units designed for individuals or families making between $33,000 and $63,000 annually.

The units are designed to attract individuals in such occupations as health care, retail hospitality, childcare and education, public service and general factory and warehouse workers.

Funding comes from the IHCDA and is not Section 8 housing, according to the TWG proposal.

The units will sit on approximately seven acres along Webster St., near the Dollar General store.

“This makes our community that much more marketable,” said DeBaun during the meeting. “We talk about the opportunity to keep our children home. This gives them the opportunity to come back home. Unlike some communities in the metro area, we gladly accept those engineers, architects and accountants. I am happy to see a project of this nature.”

If TWG receives the tax credits during the IHCDA awards period in November, construction is slated to begin in the spring or summer of 2024 with completion scheduled for the fall of 2025.

In other council business Monday:

• Approved a transfer resolution for $249,999 that will be used to finalize the purchase of a new ladder fire truck expected to be delivered by the end of the month. The $1.1 million truck was due for arrival in 2022. That cost was not budgeted for 2023, hence the resolution of reverting funds already appropriated for a project that did not come to fruition, according to city clerk-treasurer Scott Asher.

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