Two new housing developments will bring 42 more residential units to downtown Traverse City – plus a proposed four-story Warehouse District apartment complex could move ahead if city planning commissioners green-light the project December 6.

Socks Construction
The Traverse City construction firm behind Ivy Terrace and Old Town Corner Condominiums is planning a new development on property between those two projects.

Socks Construction is targeting a spring groundbreaking on two 3.5-story buildings in the vacant lot next to Bay Bridal Boutique at 135 East Eighth Street (pictured). The new buildings – which will have a shared courtyard between them – will each house 16 “micro-unit” condos, for a total of 32 units. Each one-bedroom, one-bathroom condo will come in at approximately 600 square feet.

“The idea is they’re smaller and less expensive (than other condos on the market), but are still quite nicely appointed,” says developer Dave Socks. “It’s a nice alternative for people who want to be downtown, but who don’t have a big family and don’t need all the space. We also looked at the location and what the density would allow, and it just made sense to go to a smaller unit and have it be price-driven.”

Units will range in price from $199,000 to $209,000. Reservations are already secured for 22 of the 32 units, according to Socks. The project site will offer 16 parking spaces on a first-come, first-served basis for buyers, with parking available for the remaining units in the Old Town Parking Garage. The first phase of units should be ready for occupancy by “this time next year,” according to Socks, with the second phase complete in spring 2018.

918 West
Ted and Joanie Kunnath hope to help meet rental demand in downtown Traverse City when they open a new apartment complex on West Front Street next summer.

The Kunnaths are building two three-story buildings on a lot at 918 West Front Street across from Imprés Salon and next to Slabtown Burgers. The development’s southern building will face West Front, while the northern building will face Third Street. “We’re going to have a total of 10 units,” says Ted, whose firm T.K. Builders of Grand Traverse Inc. will serve as the project’s general contractor. “Eight of them will be approximately 550 square feet, and two of them will be penthouse apartments that are approximately 1,400 square feet.”

Units will have “nicer finishes” such as fireplaces, granite countertops, custom cabinets, washers and dryers, and energy-efficient appliances. The majority of apartments will be one-bedroom, while the penthouse units will be two-bedroom and come with patio areas. Rental rates will start at $950 per month, says Ted.

Demolition started on the site last week, with the foundation going in next week. The development will offer enough on-site parking for all units. The Kunnaths aim to have 918 West – as the project is called – ready for occupancy by June. “It seems like there are a lot of people selling right now, but not a lot of rentals,” says Ted. “We saw a need for this.”

Warehouse Flats
After two stalled attempts to get approval from city planning commissioners to rezone the former Fifth-Third property in the Warehouse District to allow a new workforce housing complex to go forward, developer Thom Darga hopes the third time will be the charm when he appears before the board December 6.

Planning commissioners opted to delay or take no action on Darga’s request at two previous meetings in October and November. The developer is seeking approval to rezone the site to allow him to build up to 60 feet high instead of the 45 feet currently allowed on the parcel. Darga plans to build a new four-story development between the Boardman River and Garland Street offering retail/restaurant/office space on the ground floor and workforce rental apartments ranging from 550 to 1,200 square feet on the top three floors.

Commissioners expressed support for the project concept but were torn on extending “spot” or conditional rezoning to parcels on a piecemeal basis in the Warehouse District, circling the possibility instead of revisiting the entire zoning ordinance for the district. Since commissioners took no action and did not reject or approve his request, Darga is able to continue to approach them and plead his case.

“We could probably build this building in the time it would take them to rezone that area, which is why two of our predecessors in the Warehouse District – Hotel Indigo and Grandview Market – sought conditional rezoning for 60 feet,” says Darga. “The staff report supports this being the right project at the right time for the city. It follows the master plan. I know I’ve got a viable project the city needs.”

Darga says while project details and terms won’t differ in any way from past appearances before commissioners, he plans to “clarify the economic impact the project will provide…as well as the maintenance we’ll bring to the river and the value that will provide.”

“We see this as a true public-private partnership…trying to deliver workforce apartments to Traverse City,” Darga says. “I’m not going to walk away from that.”