Mayor Rybak breaks ground on Mill City Apartments
Despite recession, $25M Village Green project begins
October 27, 2009 (MINNEAPOLIS) – Village Green, with support from the City of Minneapolis and local companies, today celebrated the groundbreaking of Mill District City Apartments. The $25 million project will create local jobs using area companies, complement downtown’s growth with 250 new residents for local businesses, and annually contribute $350,000 of real estate taxes to the city.
"Under some of the most challenging economic situations, many people came together and put the extra effort in to make this project a reality," said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak. "The perseverance of our city’s economic development staff, local lenders like U.S. Bank and the incredible team at Village Green are showing that Minneapolis is open for business and that great things are happening in our city even during these difficult economic times."
"Almost no one has been able to secure financing in this difficult market, but Village Green’s dedicated supporters and partners, including the City of Minneapolis, U.S. Bank, Avgeris & Associates, Western Bank, Metropolitan Capital Bank, BKV Group and Frana Companies, and 90-year history, enabled us to achieve Mill District City Apartments," said Jonathan Holtzman, Village Green CEO and chairman. "With our knowledge of today’s renter and economic cycles, we have a long-term view and we’re not waiting for the economy to recover; we’re contributing to the recovery in Minneapolis."
Adjacent to the Mississippi River, Mill District City Apartments will complement the Mill District/Washington Street corridor expansion with rental housing that currently does not exist. This, combined with the housing shift of suburban to urban, the demographic and attitudinal direction of the Echo Boomer generation, the dynamic Minneapolis/St. Paul-based companies and Minneapolis’ goal to create a vibrant downtown, is why Village Green continues to invest in the city.
"U.S. Bank is pleased to be working with our outstanding partners Village Green and the City of Minneapolis to help make this project a reality, especially in this challenging economic environment," said Elliot Jaffee, Twin Cities market president for U.S. Bank. "As the home-town bank, we are especially proud of being a part of the Mill District City Apartments project, which will be a great addition to our downtown community."
At the corner of Portland and Washington Avenues, Mill District City Apartments will be a five-story building delivering 175 luxury apartments, a 3,500-square-foot specialty market and a lifestyle for rent, including the ability to walk to work, culture and entertainment. It will follow the National Green Building Standard (NGBS) created in partnership with the National Association of Home Builders.
"I am excited Village Green is going to fill the empty hole in our Historic Mills District," stated Council Member Lisa Goodman. "Village Green provides a high quality housing option with a strong management team that will be an excellent addition to our downtown."
"Village Green is creating union construction jobs and permanent jobs, as well as using Minneapolis-based companies for this development," continued Holtzman. "Mill District City Apartments will deliver apartments when the economy is recovering with first occupancy scheduled for fall 2010 and completion in early 2011."
Village Green owns and manages apartment communities in Minneapolis and entered the market in the mid-90’s. In the last five years the company built four other apartment communities in downtown and uptown Minneapolis – Eitel Building City Apartments, Lake Calhoun City Apartments, Loring Park City Apartments and Uptown City Apartments. These communities add to a vibrant downtown and provide rental housing for employees of Minneapolis/St. Paul companies. Its most recent development, Eitel Building City Apartments, earned Multifamily Executive’s 2009 Adaptive Reuse Project of the Year award. Suburban communities under Village Green’s management also include Village Park of Bloomingdale, Village Park of Minnetonka and Park Glen in St. Louis Park.
About Village Green
Village Green, with offices in Cincinnati, Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis and St. Louis, is one of the nations largest privately held developers and managers of luxury apartment communities. Established in 1919, Village Green operates approximately 40,000 apartments in 140 rental communities under five distinct brands: Village Green, City Apartments, Regents Park, Village Park and Leading Furnished Suites. Explore villagegreen.com.
Published Oct. 27, 2009