A 74-unit home for veterans is planned in Racine’s Uptown neighborhood as part of a plan to revitalize the 94-acre area in mid-town Racine.
The Herman Kittle veterans’ housing project is one of three major development projects planned for the neighborhood along Washington Avenue. The area also includes some of Racine’s largest employers, including Twin Disc and SC Johnson.
The city believes the projects will generate significant value, which could spur additional redevelopment to the once thriving commercial and industrial district.
The plan commission will vote Wednesday on whether to create a $13.2 million tax incremental financing district for the Uptown neighborhood. If approved, the Common Council meets April 6 to vote on creating the TIF. The last step will be for the Joint Board of Review to give its approval in late April.
Indianapolis-based Herman & Kittle Properties Inc. is planning to transform more than three acres of mostly former industrial buildings on Clark Street between 15th and 16th streets into a mixed-use complex of 74 apartments and amenities catering to veterans.
The veteran’s housing project is the first phase of the Uptown plan, which the city hopes to complete in 2017.
Phase two, which will begin in 2018, will include using the former Our Savior Lutheran Church, 2219 Washington Ave., for a banquet faculty and reception hall. The 14,000-square-foot church includes an attached mansion.
SC Johnson has announced plans to modernize its corporate headquarters in the Uptown neighborhood. When the project is complete in 2018, 300,000 square feet of the company’s building will be reconfigured. Improvements will also be made to outdoor green spaces.
Additional project activities could include the acquisition and relocation of other property in the uptown area, according to city documents.
