Fort Wayne's Skyline Tower gets first Regional Cities Initiative money: $2.8 million

The Skyline Tower Project received approval of its request for $2.8 million. The money would go toward its total investment of $40 million for a 170,000-square-foot building next to the Ash Brokerage Project in downtown Fort Wayne.

Earlier this year, Great Lakes Capital said it will construct 124 apartments along with retail and office space. Retail will be on the building’s first floor, with office space on the second floor and 10 floors of apartment units.

The board’s funding recommendation now goes to the Indiana Economic Development Corp. for review and final approval. The board is responsible for distributing $42 million in state funding granted to northeast Indiana through the Regional Cities Initiative.

Regional Cities Initiative funding aims to attract and retain talent by providing financial support for “game-changing quality-of-place projects” that will increase economic growth, lead to population growth and enhance the region’s national brand identity. Northeast Indiana won one of three Regional Cities grants with its Road to One Million Plan that outlines more than 70 projects and $1.5 billion in investment over the next 10 years.

“While Great Lakes Capital’s Skyline Tower was not included in the original Road to One Million Plan, it directly advances the downtown and community development goals of the plan,” said RDA board Chairman Jeff Turner of Metal Technologies in Auburn. “This is exactly the kind of project for which the Regional Cities Initiative is designed — to encourage investment that makes Northeast Indiana a place people want to live and work. The Skyline Tower is already attracting other exciting and vibrant investments in the central city.”

The final contract for Regional Cities funding has not been completed; but due to an approaching funding deadline for the Skyline Tower project, the Regional Development Authority agreed to hear the proposal early.

The Skyline Tower project’s proposed 124 apartment units contribute directly toward a goal of 2,000 residential units in downtown Fort Wayne over the next 10 years, the Regional Development Authority said in a news release.

The authority said the project’s modern, high-rise residential units will provide a unique living option that will help attract and retain employees critical to northeast Indiana. Plans call for potentially 200 people living in the new building and more than 100 people working there.

“Additional residential housing for downtown Fort Wayne is in demand as we look to attract more talent to the area, and I applaud the RDA Board for repurposing this potential challenge into an opportunity for growth,” said John Sampson, president and CEO of the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership. “If we are committed to tripling our population growth rate over the next few years, we need this type of tenacious leadership to get us there.”