Long-awaited plan for midtown has mixed-use buildings, green space
LOREN BENOIT/Press Ignite cda is negotiating a proposal for midtown, which includes several multi-storied commercial and apartment structures at this green space.
In the future, this green space next to Junk on Fourth Street may be home to a mix of commercial and residential properties. (LOREN BENOIT/Press)
COEUR d’ALENE — The city’s urban renewal agency is negotiating with a Coeur d’Alene firm to turn a piece of undeveloped land in the heart of the midtown business district into mixed commercial and residential property.
Ignite cda director Tony Berns said the agency is negotiating the terms of a contract, including a timeframe, to transform part of the 800 block of Fourth Street into two three-story structures.
The nine-member ignite cda board unanimously accepted a proposal by Midtown Ventures LLC that would require removing the JUNK antique store and a grassy swath owned by ignite cda, turning the space into two multi-use buildings and 4,300 square feet of public green space.
Ignite cda called for proposals for the land earlier this year after several failed attempts over many years to secure a plan for the property, which is within its Lake District.
A call this year for new proposals drew plans from Midtown Ventures and Boise-based DeChase Miksis.
Both plans would have incorporated parking and public space, as well as a mixed retail and commercial use, but the Midtown Venture plan provided more of each, board members said.
“They were both good proposals, but one was outstanding,” board member Jim Chapkis said.
The board heard from 19 community members, who provided input that helped the board zero in on the Midtown Ventures proposal, members said.
“I liked this proposal because it provides for a much larger green space and it had a bigger footprint,” one community member said.
Board commissioner Sarah Garcia said the board’s decision mirrored the community’s.
“They did validate the direction this board has chosen to go,” Garcia said.
John and Ann Beutler, who own Midtown Ventures and also own the building that houses JUNK, plan to build the new project in two phases. Each phase would include building one of the three-story structures that provide 3,000 square feet of commercial property on the ground level and two stories with eight apartment units on each story.
The DeChase Miksis proposal called for one three-story, multi-use building with 6,000 square feet of commercial property at street level and 21 apartments on the upper levels.
The ignite board formed an ad hoc committee to consider both plans before bringing recommendations back to the board.
According to the initial plan for the site, the Beutlers must complete the Midtown Ventures project within three years, before the Lake District expires in 2021.
Ignite cda, which owns part of the property, has tried for several years to lure a developer to the site in an effort to reinvigorate midtown. The agency received a lot of input over the years on how best to use the property, including from neighbors; and an offer was made by a realty company to buy the land last year. The latest proposal, however, which combines public space with parking and mixed retail and residential uses, is the best fit for the site, board members said.