Bids for East 16th Street site propose range of residential options

Indianapolis Public Schools has received five bids for its 4.5-acre property at 1129 E. 16th St., which houses the school system’s facilities management department. It intends to sell the property along the bustling corridor to one of the developers.

A committee likely will make a recommendation and present it for consideration to the IPS board at its Feb. 22 meeting.

Here’s a detailed look at the five bids, which are posted on the IPS website:

— TWG Development LLC

Amount bid for property: $2.75 million

Proposal: 268 apartment units, 5,000 square feet of retail and eight single-family homes

Additional details: 80 percent of the apartment units (214) will be available at market-rate rents, with 20 percent (54) available at affordable-housing rates. The eight single-family homes will be built as housing options for IPS teachers and staff and will be sold at cost, or rented, to provide affordable housing options for them.

Cost of project: $40 million

Largest funding sources: $29.5 million construction loan, $3.5 million in tax-increment financing proceeds and $2.6 million in state industrial recovery tax credits

— Third Street Ventures, Holladay Properties

Amount bid for property: $2.18 million

Proposal: 80 to 100 mixed-income apartment units, office headquarters for Lessonly Inc. in existing building, and construction of new office or apartment building, with parking structure, at the south end of the property.

Additional details: The existing IPS facilities maintenance department building would be renovated to accommodate Lessonly, with possible expansion into the warehouse building, to create more than 50,000 square feet of office/flex space. The development team is in discussions with Central Indiana Community Foundation to provide financial support for a housing-assistance program for IPS teachers and staff.

Cost of project: $20 million

Largest funding sources: conventional financing of $16 million and $4 million in cash equity, with the possibility of pursuing tax credits, creative equity and debt, as well as government incentives.

— Kosene & Kosene, CalAtlantic Homes

Amount bid for property: $1.9 million

Proposal: Ten new townhome buildings with six for-sale units in each, in addition to a mix of office and retail space

Additional details: The townhomes would range in size from 1,700 square feet to 2,100 square feet and priced between $350,000 and $400,000. Kosene plans to partner with the Martindale-Brightwood Community Development Corp. to redevelop the main building along East 16th Street into retail space on the first floor and office space above. The structure to the rear known as the Polk Stable building would have 8,000 square feet of retail on the first floor and 15,900 square feet of “creative class” or traditional office space on the second and third levels.

Cost of project: $24.5 million

Largest funding sources: $17.75 million in cash and equity and nearly $6.8 million in conventional financing and government incentives to fund an affordable-housing component of the plan.

— Monument Realty LLC

Amount bid for property: $1.4 million

Proposal: Retail/commercial space, in additional to apartment units and for-sale condominiums

Additional details: Between 150 and 250 residential units to be built at the south end of the property, with townhomes constructed on a piece of property south of East 15th Street. The main building along East 16th Street would be retained for commercial and retail uses, with the Polk Stable building also retained for commercial/retail uses.

Cost of project: $23 million

Largest funding sources: A $16.5 million Section 108 loan administered by the city, in addition to a $2.5 million from the city’s Lift Indy program, and $2 million in equity.

— Milhaus Development LLC

Amount bid for property: $500,000 without government incentives or $1.27 million subject to the project receiving a small TIF award.

Proposal: Apartments, townhomes, commercial/retail space, and creative commercial and art/maker space

Additional details: Between 150 and 200 newly built apartments, with up to 40 units offered at discounted rents for IPS teachers. Twenty-six for-sale townhomes also would be built. Existing buildings would house rental lofts and 5,000 square feet of commercial/retail space along East 16th, in addition to creative commercial and art/maker space in the Polk Stable building.

Cost of project: $32.15 million

Largest funding sources: Equity and conventional debt, in addition to TIF funds if IPS would accept the developer’s larger purchase price for the land.