Milwaukee-based development firm
J. Jeffers & Co. is beginning construction on the commercial component of its $200 million mixed-use
Belle City Square redevelopment project in Racine, a spokesperson for the company said.
The project includes housing, commercial, recreational and educational elements at a 13-acres site, the historic former Horlick Malted Milk factory complex, northwest of downtown Racine.
The development will include historic building rehabilitation and new construction.
Upon completion, Belle City Square will offer more than 400 multi-family housing units and over 200,000 square feet of commercial space. 400,000 square feet of the total development will be historic rehabilitation and adaptive reuse with an additional 400,000 square feet of new construction, according to a press release.
Belle City Square has been promoted as a place to live, work and play. However, the development has been primarily residential so far.
“Our first three phases brought a range of residential uses, from much needed affordable housing to market rate units, through a combination of historic rehabilitation and architecturally sensitive new construction,” said Joshua Jeffers, chief executive officer of J. Jeffers & Co., in a press release.
Upcoming projects at Belle City Square will include creative studio space, private office space and an inclusive coffee shop at 2100 Northwestern Avenue. The Inclusive Bean coffee shop will partner with Sonnenberg Schools to provide employment opportunities for students that have special needs.
Three residential buildings have
begun leasing units since the project began in 2018 offering one, two and three-bedroom apartments, as well as studio apartments. Two residential buildings are set to open later this year, the spokesperson said.
The project has received financial assistance from the city through tax incremental financing, low-income housing tax credits from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority and, most recently, New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC).
Last week,
First Ring Industrial Redevelopment Enterprise, Inc. (FIRE), a West Allis-based community development entity, announced that it funded $13 million in NMTC for the Belle City Square project.
The project also received $8 million in NMTC from National Trust Community Investment Corporation for a total of $21 million in NMTC, according to Jeffers.
The NMTC program, established by Congress in 2000, permits individual and corporate taxpayers to receive a credit against federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments.
The $13 million will help pay for a $23.9 million, 32,000-square-foot project which is part of the larger Belle City Square development, according to a press release from FIRE.
This part of the project will create 80 indirect and direct jobs, serve community organization and retain quality and accessible jobs in a severely distressed area, the release says.
“The project meets the mission and core values of FIRE,” said John Stibal, president of FIRE. "The City of Racine, especially Mayor Cory Mason, and J. Jeffers and Co., are great partners, in launching a catalytic redevelopment that can leverage the economic power of the NMTC program to bring change and opportunity to a distressed neighborhood.”
The Horlick complex operated in Racine from 1873-1975. It fell into disrepair until Jeffers purchased it in 2018. All historical buildings at the complex are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
