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News
News
By Allison Joy
CRYSTAL FALLS — Following a public hearing held Nov. 13, members of the Crystal Falls City Council voted unanimously to approve the sale of a 27-acre plot near the old airport, pending the approval of a proposed contract with Wisconsin-based developer S.C. Swiderski.
The development will be located at the old airport site, with development extending north of the baseball diamond. A treeline will be maintained between the complex and the cemetery. The city will need to put in a new roadway, which is planned to run parallel to Logan Street.
“I would propose we do not put the street right up against the back of the property lines of those existing homeowners,” said City Manager Gerard Valesano. “We would leave a buffer there.”
Valesano also said the City would ensure a revision clause in the agreement that would allow it to take back ownership of the land should the project not come to fruition.
The next step will be to finish feasibility reports and craft a development agreement with the City. If an agreement can be reached, the project would move into civil engineering. No agreement on the sale is final until a contract regarding the development plan is approved.
In addition to building its complexes, Swiderski also handles all leasing and management of the sites.
“One of my biggest fears here in the community is [developers] come in, and they turn a quick profit on it, and then they’re out the door,” said Mayor Pro Tem Chris Nocerini. “I think that the city has been kind of put in some tough spots prior to this, and it’s nice to hear you’re in it for the long haul.”
Swiderski has developed and maintains about 30 complexes, or 3,000 units, in smaller communities throughout Wisconsin — including recent developments in Florence and Niagara. Property management in Crystal Falls will be handled through the company as well, with these three communities making up a single region.
“We develop the land, we build the apartments, we lease the apartments, and we maintain the apartments,” said Joleen Specht, development project manager with Swiderski, during a presentation preceding the vote. “...We don’t put apartments into a community if we don’t feel we can sustain them over time, because we’re putting ourselves at risk as well.”
Phase one of the plan will see the construction of 68 market-rate units. Units will range from one- to three-bedrooms, including both apartments and single-level family dwellings, with rents ranging from $1000–$1,800 per month.
Amenities included in rent will be wi-fi and cable, heat, water and sewer, garbage collection, landscaping and snow removal, and maintenance. There will also be 80 garage stalls and a total of 116 parking spaces.
“This is a really good thing,” said Barbara Luck of the Crystal Falls Business Association during public comment. “You need people here.You need progress. If you don’t let this come in, you’re just putting your foot on the oxygen hose, which has been going on for years.”
City Clerk and Treasurer Tara Peltoma said that because the complex is a commercial development, it would not impact tax rates for residential homes in the area.
The footprint of the 68 units currently proposed will not fill the full 27 acres. The company said it intends to create additional recreation space, including a dog park, as well as leave room to expand with additional units if demand continues.
“This housing development is going to be probably the biggest industry to come to this town ever, maybe since the mines were here,” Valesano said. “It’s going to generate for the area — from the schools to the county, youth camps, senior center, the road commission, [the fire department] right down the line, approximately $311,000 of revenue every year.
“For the City, it’s looking at potentially between $90,000–$100,000 a year, actually. What that’s going to do as that continues every year, it takes away the stranglehold when it comes to utility costs, water, sewer, electricity.”
Sprecht said projects typically take about two-and-a-half years to complete, with an estimated August 2025 start date in Crystal Falls and units available in December of 2026.