The city of Appleton is abuzz with economic development, from its city center to the edges of the city’s boundaries.
The first step in its most recent progress was the approval of a new tax increment financing (TIF) district to expand the city’s Southpoint Commerce Park on its southeast side. This will entail installing infrastructure and adding acreage, with the city serving as the developer. The prompt for this is the community’s strong industrial sector, says Kara Homan, community and economic development director for the city of Appleton.
Within the scope of that project is the development of large-scale, turnkey industrial spec buildings by F Street Development, a Milwaukee-based investment group.
“Our existing park has been filling up, and we’re selling land at a good pace, to the point where we knew we would run out of developable industrial land,” Homan says. “Industrial businesses in a commerce park like this bring in capital and customers from throughout the country and beyond. It’s not just turning [over] money within the community but bringing new money into the economy and expanding the economic base.”
Near Interstate 41, work in a very community development-focused capacity is underway for Thrivent’s 600-acre campus between Ballard Road and Meade Street. The organization is in the early stages of creating a thoughtful master plan to guide the long-term development for the campus, with the goal of being a place where Northeast Wisconsinites come together to live, work and play.
“While the effort to reimagine the campus is privately driven, we are thankful Thrivent has engaged not just the city but the community at large, hosting sessions to provide input and guide their vision,” Homan says.
Mixed-used momentum
At the city’s center is the revitalization of the original Avenue Mall, now known as City Center Plaza. Dark Horse Development and Boldt Holdings entered into a development agreement with the city to reinvigorate City Center Plaza into its next iteration.
The west end of the property will continue to be the Building for Kids Children’s Museum and Appleton City Hall; the east end of the property used by the Appleton School District would remain as is. The space in between is the area ripe for redevelopment, Homan says.
Upon redevelopment, it will be known as Fox Commons and be anchored by health and wellness services, retail, office, and food and beverage entities.
The innovative redevelopment entails Mosaic Family Health purchasing a condominium unit with two levels in the building; it will be used to expand Mosaic’s community-driven health care services. Furthermore, Lawrence University will become a long-term client, building out additional student housing while also advancing its mission to further integrate students within the community. Officials say the location will expose students to the local business and health care communities as well.
Demolition of the site is in progress and will transition into the construction phase soon.
“It will bring a whole new life to the center of our downtown,” Homan says. “While the building had some activity in it that was really wonderful, the majority was vacant. Our hope is that the [Lawrence] students and new employees at Mosaic will bring additional activity and spending power to downtown.”
Housing, arts in focus
Also downtown is the RISE Apartments development, a significant residential project that will help address the city’s need for affordable housing. This is slated for construction near the north side of College Avenue, with the city partnering with FORE Development and Mosaic Property Ventures (known as MF Housing Partners). The project will be funded by some American Rescue Plan Act grant funding provided by the city, as well as Outagamie County. Construction is underway, with plans including both a multilevel apartment complex and townhomes across the street.
Last year, the city conducted a market analysis of the need for housing. In response, Mayor Jake Woodford created a housing development policy task force to define and remove barriers to housing developments in the city.
“What we can do as a city from zoning, regulatory and process perspectives to help developers build at the price point and the locations their customers need [is the focus],” Homan says. “The task force and [this project] are examples of the city prioritizing housing.”
Nearby on the 300 block of E. College Avenue, a few of the aforementioned entities are coming together in a collaborative effort focused on the arts. Lawrence University and the Trout Museum of Art are working on a redevelopment project to relocate the museum to the lower level of a new four-story, mixed-use facility. On the upper level, Lawrence University will have faculty offices, housing, and meeting and experiential learning spaces. The site underwent demolition and preparation this fall.
“We’ve got some great momentum in the city of Appleton,” Homan says. “The city of Appleton team [members] are quiet doers, laying the groundwork, getting the right policies in place, securing the right investments … and we’re starting to see the fruits of their labor.”
