Second Avenue Rowhomes expected to open in early 2024

Much of the 900 block of Second Avenue South, just southeast of the Fort Dodge Municipal Building, is currently an old, crumbling parking lot owned by the city.

On one corner stands the historic Bruce Funeral Home. On another corner is Chronicle, a 22-foot-tall sculpture created in honor of the city’s sesquicentennial. And on the entire southern half of the block is cracked concrete.

In the near future, however, that parking lot will become home to 32 new families.

-Submitted image
This image shows a rendering of the 2nd Avenue Rowhomes that will be built in the 900 block of Second Avenue South.

The city of Fort Dodge entered into a development agreement with DEV Partners, of Des Moines, to develop the mostly unused city parking lot into new, modern housing.

“About a year and a half ago, I said we should get invested in the cities doing the amazing amount of infrastructure that’s going on,” said Danny Heggen, director of development and investments for DEV Partners.

The city of Fort Dodge, he said, had already been contracted with DEV’s sister company, Shift Collective, to develop the master plan for the Lincoln neighborhood just north of downtown.

The rowhomes will bring a “high design” to the area while creating 32 new housing units, Heggen said. From the outside, the development will look just like 10 new rowhomes, but beyond the facade, the construction will allow for flexibility on the use of space, Heggen said. The units will be a mix of one-bedroom and two-bedroom units.

“Each of them will have their own walk-up entry to sort of feel like you’re walking into your own house,” Heggen said.

Rent for the rowhome units will be in the $900-$1,200 range, he said. DEV Partners will also handle the management of the property once constructed.

There is a high demand for new housing in the Fort Dodge area, Heggen said, and the flexibility of the project’s design allows for a higher density of multifamily homes in the development.

“We look at areas of urban infill; we can start to focus on walkability and connectivity,” he said. “The Oak Hill neighborhood is so beautiful. … By doing some infill in this parking lot, it’s such a great example of being able to bring people living in the core of the city, that work in and around the community and that can also start to experience all the great things happening in downtown Fort Dodge.”

The city previously worked with Foutch Brothers LLC, of Kansas City, to develop the property. In 2018, a plan for new townhomes on the site was announced, but it never got off the ground.

DEV Partners is working on similar rowhome developments in Des Moines, Indianola and Pella.

DEV Partners has other properties that it manages in Fort Dodge. Under the name Hom Investments 2 LLC, the company purchased the buildings at 700 Central Ave. and 1109 Central Ave. in 2021. Heggen said they are working on a “refresh” of the residential units on the upper floors of both buildings, as well as exterior improvements next year at 700 Central Ave.

Construction on the Second Avenue Rowhomes is anticipated to start this spring and the units ready for move-in by the start of 2024.

“I think that this is going to be a great model for what can be done in other areas of the state that are in need of housing as well,” Heggen said. “We really want this to be sort of a kickstart to what housing could look like.”

The entire development is expected to cost about $4.89 million, Heggen said.

In September, 2nd Avenue Rowhomes was one of 57 housing projects in 30 Iowa counties to receive the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s Workforce Housing Tax Credit. The 2nd Avenue project will receive $930,995 in tax credits on this project.

The Workforce Housing Tax Credit program provides tax benefits to developers to build new housing in Iowa communities, focusing especially on those projects using abandoned, empty or dilapidated properties.

Other area projects receiving the Workforce Housing Tax Incentive include Rockport Phase 4 in Emmetsburg and Wright Time Housing in Clarion.

District 29 expansion underway

Just over a year after the District 29 apartments and townhomes welcomed the first residents, developers of the housing area are preparing to expand the site.

In October, representatives from Talon Development, Eagle Construction and the Greater Fort Dodge Growth Alliance held a ceremonial groundbreaking to kick off Phase II of District 29.

District 29, named for its location near North 29th Street and Dodger Drive, first broke ground in the fall of 2020. In September 2021, the four-story apartment building with 93 units and the five five-plex townhome buildings were opened. In total, the development created 118 new housing units for Fort Dodge.

“That’s exciting for us here in Fort Dodge,” Councilman Dave Flattery, who is the mayor pro tem, said at the groundbreaking. “The need for housing is critical in this community and we thank you for that investment.”

The development of Phase II will create an additional 118 new housing units, said Josh Kruger, president of Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Eagle Construction and Talon Development. The units will be a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedrooms.

“I wanted to reiterate the success that we’ve had here in Fort Dodge,” Kruger said. “We opened the building in October [last year] and by the following April, we were already at 100 percent occupancy. I think we opened up the building at just over 60 percent occupancy.”

Phase II will be a mirror image of Phase I and essentially double the number of rental units in the complex. It will also include some new amenities — a fenced-in pool with a patio and seating area, as well as a dog park.

“This was our plan when we came in and bought the land from the Litchfields,” said Steve Boote, CEO of Eagle Construction and Talon Development. “They were great to deal with. They’ve still got a whole bunch more land, so if Fort Dodge keeps growing, we’ll grow with you.”

Like the original apartment building, the new building will also feature a community room and 24-hour fitness center.

The new buildings are anticipated to be ready for move-in next fall.