MISHAWAKA — A total of 906 apartments along Fir Road could be built — in two complexes at the north and south ends of the city — if both developers follow through on their plans.
That would be in addition to the 230 apartments near downtown’s Beutter Park where the city itself hopes to invest along with money from the state’s Regional Cities Initiative. Officials recently had to revise the dollar figure downward, but still aim to fill vacant, city-owned lots and stir downtown growth.
Watermark Residential, based in Indianapolis, is proposing to build a complex with 390 apartments and a clubhouse on 29 acres at the southwest corner of Fir Road and the Indiana Toll Road. Gathered into 10 buildings, each apartment would have its own garage and entrance, giving them the feel of single-family homes, and the clubhouse would have an outdoor pool, 24-hour fitness center and at least one dog park, said Jose Kreutz, Watermark’s senior vice president of development.
Watermark is asking the city to annex those 29 acres, which will come to the Mishawaka Common Council for approval, potentially at its meeting Oct. 17. The city’s Plan Commission gave its approval on Tuesday. Sale of the land to Watermark is contingent on the annexation and zoning.
The land includes a house with open, grassy fields and an oval track where the owner has kept her horses. It went on the market earlier this year, and since then, the city has had a few inquiries — all of them from multi-unit residential projects, said Derek Spier, senior planner for the city.