Fort Wayne’s redevelopment commission signed off on a TIF district expansion to include land for the Headwaters Lofts proposal Monday evening.
A TIF district captures property tax income from new developments to use for public improvements within its defined space.
Headwaters Lofts is a proposed $67.5 million mixed-use development located along Superior Street, west of Club Soda. An economic development agreement between the City of Fort Wayne and Indianapolis-based developer Barrett & Stokely was revealed last Thursday, having already passed through the city’s plan commission.
This was the twelfth time the commission expanded Fort Wayne’s “Civic Center Redevelopment Project Area and Urban Renewal Area.” That district covers properties between Berry and Wayne streets from Webster Street to Lafayette Street, as well as buildings like Citizens Square and the Rousseau Center.
The commission already signed off on the expansion earlier this year, but according to Joe Giant with the city’s community development department, the timing wasn’t right.
“We wanted to be relatively sure that we weren't creating this speculatively; we wanted to feel good about the prospects of the development. So we held off on this stuff for a while,” said Giant.
City Council is the final hurdle Headwaters Lofts must clear before construction can begin. If approved, that is expected to start at the end of the year or early 2020.
The six-story structure would house 232 residences, feature 12,000 square feet of first-floor retail space and a 651-space parking garage in a single, brick building. It is estimated the project could be completed by late 2021 or early 2022.
