Rendering courtesy of TenBerke ArchitectsAn artist’s rendition of the five-story, 52 unit apartment building in front of Cummins Inc.’s parking garage along Washington Street between Sixth and Seventh streets.
The developer that built The Taylor is seeking city approval to move forward with another downtown apartment building that had last come before the city several years ago.
Flaherty & Collins Properties is planning to build a five-story, 52 unit apartment building in front of Cummins Inc.’s parking garage along Washington Street between Sixth and Seventh streets, referred to in planning documents as “Taylor Uptown.” The development will also have 8,741 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor.
The project in 2023 received $5.8 million in central tax-increment financing (TIF) dollars after receiving approval from the Columbus Redevelopment Commission and Columbus City Council members in a split vote. Director of Redevelopment Heather Pope told The Republic that it is not anticipated that the developer will seek any additional TIF funding.
City officials described the loan as a “forgivable loan” that the developer will pay back over time through property taxes. A TIF district is a mechanism that allows the redevelopment commission to retain increasing property taxes in a selected area to fund projects intended to benefit the community.
During today’s Columbus Plan Commission meeting, Flaherty & Collins will ask for two modifications from the zoning ordinance. One is to have a structure that is 62 feet, 7 inches tall, 2 feet, 7 inches taller than the 60 foot maximum allowed in the Commercial: Downtown (CD) zoning district. The other is to allow a building setback to be 25 feet on Seventh Street, where a 0-foot build-to-line is required.
Plan commission members will meet at 4 p.m. today at Columbus City Hall. Material related to the request can be found at columbus.in.gov/planning/agendas-materials/.
Cummins owns the property that will be developed and hired Flaherty & Collins to develop the site. The total estimated cost of the development was around $16 million when redevelopment officials first heard the proposal in 2023. According to the county’s GIS system, the parcel is 0.38 acres and still owned by Cummins.
When the TIF contribution towards the project was being considered, some city council members and members of the public expressed concerns about the project, such as the possible price point of the apartments, the level of subsidy, and whether the concept is the best use of the space.
On the other hand, those in support said an influx of residents would benefit downtown and pointed out that investing in the project does not preclude redevelopment from also pursuing affordable housing projects. Some also noted how they believed multiple housing types are needed in Columbus, something that was born out of the housing study the city completed last year that showed a need for 3,600 units by 2035, spread across all price points.
Deron Kintner, general counsel with the developer, estimated in a 2023 meeting that he would expect the target price of the new apartments to be similar to The Taylor. He also said that rent levels will ultimately be determined by the market.
Kintner estimated at the time that about 60% of the units will be one-bedroom and 40% will be two-bedroom. Flaherty & Collins’ target demographic for the project is young professionals, couples without children and empty nesters, he said in an interview a couple of years ago.
Since the TIF funding was finalized for Taylor Uptown, a 120-unit mixed-use development at 11th and Washington streets received city approval, along with a $6.4 million TIF subsidy to bankroll it.
Also, 174-units of affordable housing received approval from the city after two projects— Haw Creek Meadows at 2100 Midway and the Flats on 14th at 1520 14th St.— were awarded federal low-income housing tax credits. Haw Creek Meadows is being supported by up to $4.65 million in TIF funding through redevelopment.
The Taylor at 725 Second St. was supported with $11.8 million in TIF funding and is made up of 200 units. It was supposed to include a 10,000 square-foot urban grocer, but plans on that have fallen through. Flaherty & Collins did have a letter of intent with Bloomingfoods Co-op Market to operate a grocery store at the location, but the company backed out.
The letter of intent, which the developer had with Bloomingfoods at the time the city executed the agreement on the Taylor, stated that Flaherty & Collins would finish the interior of the space, purchase the first round of stock inventory and provide Bloomingfoods with one year of free rent.
The developer has worked to attract another grocer at the location but has been unsuccessful, according to city officials. Pope said Flaherty & Collins has also looked into other tenants for the space, like a potential cafe, but nothing concrete has come about yet.
Pope added that Flaherty & Collins is able to make the Taylor Uptown project work because of the economies of scale offered through the Taylor. The developer will be able to use the same leasing office, as well as the same staff and maintenance crew to manage both properties.
