DE PERE (NBC 26 — The City of De Pere entered an agreement with De Pere 230 Development Partners LLC to help finance the first building coming to the former Shopko site downtown.
- The city's Common Council voted unanimously to approve the deal at its meeting Tuesday night
- The assessed value of the new building is $13 million — part of a $90 million estimate for the full redevelopment project at the site, which is slated to include four or five buildings spanning across Wisconsin Street
- Video shows more details about the proposed new building and parking ramp
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
The first building has been approved for the former Shopko site in downtown De Pere — and the owners of the company next door are excited about the business it may bring.
Samuel Eason's Mexican restaurant is mostly quiet on a Wednesday afternoon — so he's ready for more neighbors.
"I believe that it's going to bring a lot of a lot more people into the area," Eason, the co-owner of La Catrina, said, "because of the fact that it's pretty desolate over in this area."
The desolate area could soon be home to a five-story building — with one floor of commercial space, plus 64 apartment units.
De Pere's Common Council approved a plan for the building Tuesday night.
"It's the first of what could be several more to come over the next few years," Dan Lindstrom said.
Lindstrom, the city's development services director, says there could be four or five buildings, including more apartments and a hotel, at the site in the future.
"We did ask the Council last year to make sure that we have the flexibility that if a developer comes in and says, 'I'd like to combine two buildings or move a building,' that flexibility is there," he said.
As part of the deal, the city will contribute $2 million, plus some tax revenue — plus build and own a neighboring parking ramp, it's first ever, set on Wisconsin Street rather than Broadway.
"The hard part is Broadway in De Pere is a very sought-after street," Lindstrom said, "and to place a significant parking structure where retail would be a really good component, and where you have good views of the river, really reserves that site to be ideal for another income-generating property"
Eason hopes the additional foot and car traffic will be a boon for business.
"That's what we're looking forward to," he said, t"rying to hang in there long enough to be able to witness the change here."
Lindstrom says construction is likely to start next year on the building — and that the parking ramp will be completed in 2026.
