The Common Council approved several actions on Aug. 16 that will pave the way for several new developments to begin in the City of Delavan.
The largest development is a proposed new apartment complex at the intersection of Phoenix Street and Faryl Ave. just north of Fest Park. The development will be called the Falcon Ridge Apartments and feature two buildings of luxury upscale units with rents ranging from $1,000 to $2,200.
Alderman Matt Bieser asked if there would be a market for apartments at that rental rate in Delavan. Paul VanHenkelum, engineer for Cardinal Engineering,of, said you would be surprised how popular these units will be. He said similar complexes in several neighboring communities have done well and have waiting lists to get in. He also said the development will help Delavan diversify its stock of apartments in the city.
Falcon Ridge Apartments will be built by Teronomy Builders. LLC and will offer one, two, three, and four-bedroom units. Two buildings are proposed with 77 units in each for a total of 154 units. There will be 24-hour maintenance and onsite management of the development. There will be a playground and picnic area, community room with patio and grilling areas, a fitness center, possibly a walking trail, and underground parking.
The project will require the city to accept some conditions that are not consistent with what is required of other apartments in the city. For example, the complex will offer a total of 296 parking spaces, which equates to 1.92 spaces per unit. The city requires two parking spaces per unit for two-bedroom apartments and 2.5 per unit for apartments with more than two bedrooms. The site plan does call for 38 parking spaces on the south side of the development that will serve as community parking spaces for Fest Park.
The development is scheduled to break ground in late fall or early spring.
New restaurants coming
The council approved a conditional use permit that will allow the former Perkins Restaurant site at 1323 E. Geneva St. to be redeveloped. Kyle Bennehoff is proposing tearing down the current building and constructing a new building that will house two Restaurants. Both will have indoor and patio seating and drive-through windows.
One of the spaces will be occupied by Qdoba Mexican Eats. The other space will be a Noodles and Company.
Tropical Smoothie Café also received approval to open a location inside the former Gamestop space at 1807 E. Geneva St. A new Chinese restaurant called Kings will open by the end of August next to Piggly Wiggly.
The council also gave approval for the Beverage Centre at 304 S. Seventh St. to be razed and replaced by a larger building. Three lots will be combined into one as two houses on the adjoining lots will also be razed to make way for the project. The new single-story building will span 5,821 square feet with 4,000 square feet of retail sales space. A new parking lot will accommodate 16 stalls. The existing parking space along Ann Street will be removed and replaced with greenspace and a sidewalk.
Mayor Ryan Schroeder said owner Max Patel has been open to selling the two houses slated for demolition to anyone interested in moving them to a vacant lot in the city.
Fire Station to get new coat of paint
The council approved a new three-layer coat of paint on the upper fiberboard portion of the Neill Flood Fire Station on Ann Steet. The existing layer of stain that was applied when the building was constructed about ten years ago has faded. The satin was covered under warranty, but the company’s solution was to replace the stain with the exact same stain and it would by the city’s responsibility to apply it.
It was determined that the tree-layer paint from Sherwin Williams that comes with a 25-year warranty was a better option than using the same stain that would likely fade again in four years or so like the original stain did. Ryder Painting had been contracted to do the work last year but could not due to health issues. The original quote for $21,000 went up to $30,000 to do it now. The bid was approved and the painting is scheduled to take place this fall.
City to sell spaces in crypt
The council agreed to sell the 48 remaining unsold crypt spaces inside the Spring Grove Mausoleum for a base price of $6,000 with annual price increases for inflation. A memo written by Public Works Supervisor Mark Wendorf said that typically crypt spaces go for $7,000-8,000 but the city has no experience opening or closing crypts or the equipment needed to reach the top tier of crypt spaces. He said the $6,000 price would not include that work or the placement of coffins or urns in the space. Wendorf said that would be the responsibility of the owner.
