A Fishers developer is proposing kicking off part of McCordsville’s future town center with infrastructure and two apartment buildings, depicted in this rendering as the two L-shaped properties across from one another in the middle of the property. Submitted illustration
A Fishers developer is proposing kicking off part of McCordsville’s future town center with infrastructure and two apartment buildings, depicted in this rendering as the two L-shaped properties across from one another in the middle of the property. Submitted illustration
McCORDSVILLE — Officials are considering a company’s proposal to kick off development of a future municipal hub with infrastructure and apartments, a pitch that also asks for a $4 million investment from the town.

Leaders expressed support for the plan but hope to alleviate their concerns in upcoming negotiations over how the town would fare if the project doesn’t move forward as anticipated.

The vision for McCordsville’s town center includes commercial, residential, mixed-use and community space developments on more than 100 acres east of Mt. Comfort Road and south of Broadway.

Fishers-based Rebar Development has about 45 acres of the westernmost portion of that area under contract, where it’s proposing a development called McCord Square. That ground mostly consists of farmland, but also includes four homes along Mt. Comfort Road.

Shelby Bowen, president of Rebar Development, said at a McCordsville Town Council meeting earlier this month that the firm would plan to invest a likely minimum of $39 million in the project’s first phase. About $8 million of that would be for infrastructure, including streets and utilities. About $31 million would be for two apartment buildings totaling about 200 units. The buildings are currently proposed to have three floors with commercial uses on the first floor. Green space would also be developed between the two buildings.

Rebar Development would give about 15 acres to the town, which would consist of space for a detention pond and, if desired, an area where a new town hall and civic commons could go.

Bowen said the firm is asking for $4 million from McCordsville to offset costs for infrastructure, and proposes the town issue a bond and provide the developer with the proceeds.

“The developer is still responsible for developing these lots, selling these lots, so that really just allows us a market feasibility to go out and sell and develop these lots,” Bowen told town council members. “And that’s key. Because you can do the math, by the time we have the acreage and the lots, it’s really necessary for us for your all’s participation to do something special here and make it market-feasible for the developer.”

Rebar Development is also asking McCordsville to create a tax allocation area for the two apartment buildings and allow the company to capture taxes generated by the properties for 25 years, borrow against those funds and determine a minimum tax payment to the town.

Additionally, the developer is asking the town for about three acres it owns at the southeast corner of Broadway and State Road 234, which is eyed for several commercial lots as a part of the overall town center plan.

The town council is slated to consider an economic development agreement from the company at its August meeting.

If the town enters into the agreement and the project doesn’t move forward after Rebar Development buys the land it has under contract, the firm proposes that the town buy the 38 acres on the southern portion for $2.2 million and leave the northern part along Broadway with the company.

“I think that it’s a good outcome for both of us,” Bowen said. “It’s not ideal. Unfortunately you have to plan for maybe things not working out as well as we all anticipate. I’d rather have that discussion with you today, and plan for that in the agreement, and feel like if it doesn’t work out, we’re both still in a position where we can move forward in fairness.”

Greg Brewer, a town council member, said he’s concerned about the town possibly being on the hook for $2.2 million.

“I would rather the developer take on a lot more risk than the town does at the end of the day,” he said. “That’s where I stand.”

If it did turn out that way, at least the town would own the land, countered Ryan Crum, McCordsville’s director of planning and building.

“A really common way to incentivize development is to purchase and own the land, and offer that to the developer,” he said. “So we will have essentially started the incentive package for the next guy that comes along, so there’s some value that we hold there. And it stays as a field until the next guy comes along.”

But it’s not as appealing as the land to the north, council president Barry Wood noted, where the commercial lots are envisioned and which Rebar Development would get.

“The most valuable part of this project for development is on Broadway,” he said.

And $2.2 million would be a large expenditure for McCordsville, added council member Tom Strayer.

“That is money that we really need as opposed to needing land at this point,” he said. “I agree that is a step forward to get to where we want to get, but I don’t want to back ourselves into a corner. ... I still want to see this go through, and I think we can work together on it. If this was the only major project the town was working on, there would be more to work with. But we’re being pulled in a bunch of different directions at this point.”

One of those directions is finding a way to put an underpass beneath the railroad tracks that cross Mt. Comfort Road, estimated at about $40 million.

Bowen said council members’ concerns can be discussed as the economic development agreement gets finalized.

“I’m open to anything,” he said. “... I don’t want the council to think that this is critical to us reaching a deal to develop.”

The council voted unanimously in support of a letter of intent with Rebar Development. Council members also voted unanimously to retain Indianapolis-based law firm Hall, Render, Killian, Heath and Lyman to negotiate on the town’s behalf over the project.
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