Presbyterian Homes & Services isn’t getting the tax increment financing it requested for the Haviland Fields project in Ramsey, but the developer is still pushing ahead with plans for the proposed 460-unit housing development.
The multiphase project, which was scheduled to go before the City Council on Tuesday night, would bring a 160-unit senior apartment building, a 280-unit non-age-restricted apartment building, and 20 senior rental townhomes to a portion of the Lord of Life Church property at 14501 Nowthen Blvd.
Haviland Fields was up for a comprehensive plan amendment, rezoning, and preliminary plat approvals at the May 28 meeting. Next steps would include Metropolitan Council review of the comp plan amendment, said Todd Larson, planning manager with the city of Ramsey.
Finance & Commerce reported last July that the developer sought $9.2 million in tax increment financing for the development a record request for the city. The City Council opted not to approve the TIF request.
Council Member Dan Specht was among those who voted against the TIF request last summer.
“I like the idea of having it in Ramsey. I think the project would add a lot of value to the city, but I’m also not a big fan of having it off the tax rolls for 20 years,” Specht said at the Aug. 8, 2023, council meeting.
Asked about the TIF request, a Presbyterian Homes official sufficed to say Tuesday that he’s focused for now on the entitlement process.
“It's tough to get too much into a finance discussion until there's a project that's approved, so at the moment the entitlement piece is the focus,” said Sam Jagodzinski, a development manager for Presbyterian Homes.
Jagodzinski said there’s no timeline for getting shovels in the ground.
Because of its size, the project required an environmental review with a 30-day public comment period. An Environmental Assessment Worksheet process was completed last fall.
As currently planned, the project includes a four-story senior apartment building along Nowthen Boulevard, a four-story all-ages building “closer to St. Francis Boulevard,” and one-level townhomes on the northern part of the site, according to city documents.
In a project narrative, Presbyterian Homes said the project “draws inspiration from the natural beauty and heritage of Ramsey, especially the Rum River, the logging history of Ramsey, the Lord of Life Church, and surrounding structures to create buildings that reflect and belong to Ramsey.”
In addition, the proposal “strategically positions multifamily and park homes to accentuate the church's prominence, foreseeing residents benefiting from its community amenities such as worship, day care, gymnasium, and communal spaces.”
A city staff report notes that the church and some of the parking lot would remain, but the project would “remove the two houses on the site and some of the underused parking lots.”
Jagodzinski said the project essentially creates a 35-acre master planned campus in a “park-like setting.”
“We're really stoked because there'll be trails, we're going to preserve as many trees as possible, and create a really nice campus feel,” he said.
Larson said Haviland Fields is one of the largest residential development proposals the city has seen in a while. But it’s certainly not the only one.
Other multifamily projects in the city’s pipeline include the proposed 218-unit Norhart Apartment building at Sunwood Drive Northwest and Zeolite Street Northwest just south of the future Ramsey Parkway.
In addition, Larson said, the city recently received an application for a 133-unit, mixed-use building on a site across the street from City Hall. That project will go before the Planning Commission on June 27, Larson said.
RELATED: Presbyterian Homes seeks record TIF ask in Ramsey
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