A developer is planning to build up to 600 multifamily housing units in Germantown.
Developer
Everett Frenz of
Wisconsin Builders Inc., working on behalf of the property's Madison-based owners, is looking to rezone the 65-acre property northeast of Fond du Lac Avenue and Donges Bay Road with several multifamily buildings.
Conceptual plans call for two-, four-, six-, 14- and 42-unit buildings, as well as two 105-unit buildings. Near the intersection of Fond du Lac and Donges Bay, the developer is proposing a 20,000-square-foot commercial building and two mixed-use buildings with ground floor retail and 28 apartment units above.
Frenz said some of the units in smaller buildings will be owner-occupied and that units in the 105-unit buildings represent a good opportunity for workforce housing.
The developer plans to seek village approval for sections of development over phases, but received feedback on the concept for the site from the Germantown Plan Commission on Monday. The commission was concerned with the density of the project, wishing that dense developments stay closer to the village center and that more of the units in this proposal would be owner-occupied. Commissioners particularly asked the developer for alternatives to the 105-unit buildings, but said they would work with the developer.
Earlier in the meeting, the commission reviewed a study of the village's housing stock that found the village has a good mix of housing at different price points, but still has a tight real estate market and, like many communities, needs to develop more middle-income housing.
In Germantown, "missing middle" housing refers to households making between $40,000 and $125,000 annually. However, the report found that Germantown's stock of aging workforce housing is meeting much of the demand for the lower end of the missing middle, necessitating more development for households earning $75,000 and up.
Thus, developers and commissioners discussed how the proposal at Fond du Lac and Donges Bay could meet some of these needs while not changing the character of the area.
The developer was asked to refine plans and return to the village for another conceptual plan review or to request a zoning change.
