New neighbor for NDSU?
Mike Nowatzki
The Forum - 02/10/2007
A proposed housing and retail development project across the street from North Dakota State University fits well with a broader effort to spruce up the 12th Avenue North corridor through campus, officials said Friday.
Roger Gilbertson, president of FM City Development LLC, plans to raze two rental properties along 12th Avenue North and replace them with a three-story building with 9,100 square feet of retail space on the main floor and
14 three-bedroom apartments on the top two floors.
A coffee shop and sandwich shop will likely occupy the retail space, said Gilbertson, son of MeritCare President and CEO Roger Gilbertson.
The project covers three lots ? 1414, 1416 and 1420
12th Avenue North ? now valued at $232,000. When the project is finished, the value will exceed $1.8 million, he said.
Gilbertson will present the project to Fargo city commissioners Monday to gauge support for the concept and his request for $750,000 in tax increment financing from the city.
Fargo Planning Director Jim Gilmour said Gilbertson?s project fits well with ongoing efforts to dress up 12th Avenue North. A street reconstruction project scheduled for 2008 is expected to include decorative lighting and other features to make the street more pedestrian-friendly.
Gilbertson has requested a zoning change for his property, from multifamily residential to limited commercial with a conditional-use permit for the housing.
Gilmour said his office will support the request.
?Anytime you can get student housing real close to campus, it?s a few less students trying to rent housing in a real residential neighborhood,? he said.
Gilbertson said he?s worked closely with NDSU to ensure the design and brick fa?ade tie in with campus buildings.
John Adams, NDSU?s vice president for business and finance, said the project will provide much-needed housing for a growing student body.
?We think it?s a great idea,? Adams said.
Gilbertson said 10 to 12 students living in the two houses targeted for demolition will receive relocation assistance if demolition starts in April as planned. He hopes to complete the project by September.
Gilmour said the two houses are in poor enough condition to warrant tax increment financing assistance to cover the cost of demolition, along with site improvements, architect fees, attorney fees, administration fees and additional funds for the sidewalk.
Gilbertson also has agreed to install a 10-foot-wide sidewalk along the alley that borders NDSU?s ?T? student parking lot behind the proposed project, Gilmour said. Students now walk through the alley to get to the parking lot, creating a dangerous situation, he said.
Gilbertson said he owns two other properties on the same block that he hopes to develop in the future.
Readers can reach Forum reporter
Mike Nowatzki at (701) 241-5528
Sounds like a sweet deal to me. Get er done.