Development firm Arc has designed an apartment complex to be located in Jeffersonville's Colston Park reminiscent of San Francisco-style townhomes. Submitted rendering
JEFFERSONVILLE — City efforts to bring more residents to downtown Jeffersonville while developing vacant fields near the Big Four Bridge continue to move forward.
During a special meeting Monday, the Jeffersonville Redevelopment Commission unanimously approved a development plan for a 20-unit apartment complex on Colston Park along Mulberry Street.
Schematics now await approval from the city's plan commission.
The development company behind the Marriott Towneplace Suites under construction on the property next door is also developing the Colston Park apartments.
Plans from the development firm Arc show a three-story building, with the company's professional office occupying 18,000 square feet and three stories on one end.
The property will have 28 parking spots along the street and in the back of the property for Arc employees, and 33 spots for residents and their visitors. Almost every residential unit will have a single-car garage on the first floor of the building.
Architectural sketches fulfill Jeffersonville Mayor Mike Moore's years-long wish to bring San Francisco-style brownstones to that spot.
"It looks first class," said Moore, also a redevelopment commissioner. "It is a distinguished, elegant look, and my days go back to watching 'The Cosby Show' back in the '80s. The Huxtables lived in the beautiful brownstones. I've just always thought that was a great look ..."
The plans are also in line with the city's new downtown design standards, set in code through the downtown overlay district in which the property is located. These design standards call for new buildings to be constructed flush with the street and parking lots to locate behind buildings.
"I think that's what [planners are] seeing when they look at growing communities," Moore said. "It makes for a friendly environment to have the front doors close to the pedestrian traffic."
The overlay district also requires any multi-family development to be at least three stories.
The Colston Park apartment project covers about an acre of land and more than 53,000 square feet of building space.
During the meeting, the redevelopment commission also approved a purchasing agreement with Waypoint Residential to develop at least 200 apartment units on another property across Mulberry Street, often called the old American Legion property. The agreement sets a $775,000 price for the land.
The apartment complex would also include a clubhouse with amenities and an "appropriately sized" parking garage.
Commissioner and City Councilman Scott Hawkins warned that developers often ask for fewer parking spots than the city requires, referencing his time on the plan commission. He hopes to avoid a shortage of spots.
"I ask us to make sure that they stick with [the requirement] because that could end up being a killer down there if parking isn't done right," Hawkins said.
The city redevelopment department still owns both properties. Developers are given a "due diligence" period to perform any needed surveys of the land before closing.
Waypoint Residential still must submit its detailed development plans to the redevelopment commission for approval before they head to the plan commission.
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