The future of 65 acres of Voit Farm on Madison’s east side could include a pedestrian/bike path connecting nearby green spaces, streets that lay flush with the curb, a dog park, a community garden and some 1,500 to 1,700 units of housing.
At a neighborhood meeting on Thursday night, presenters representing Starkweather Creek, LLC — the team of Threshold Development and Stone House Development — bookended their Power Point with an emphasis on “re-wilded” natural space.
They also delineated a proposed street grid, which would extend Leon, Harding and Walter streets north and create a new street (Starkweather Street, east to west) between four- to six-story residential buildings, the highest on the plot.
Development of Voit Farm is still in platting stages, so details are yet to come about what affordable housing and commercial uses could look like on the site.
Developers said they will seek zoning that allows for multi-family development, designed to encourage a mix of home sizes and diverse housing types. They envision short blocks and a “community hub” near the southwest corner of the plot, by Fair Oaks and Milwaukee streets.
“We want it to be a really wonderful place to walk through,” said Chris Socha, an architect at The Kubala Washatko Architects (TKWA) in Milwaukee. “And we’re going to have affordable options here — affordable from a rental perspective, and affordable from an ownership perspective.”
The big picture view
Voit Farm, located north of Milwaukee Street and east of Fair Oaks Avenue, is part of Blooming Grove, which will be annexed into Madison in 2027. It was privately owned for more than 150 years.
In a story about the sale of the property by the Voit family in January 2021, the Wisconsin State Journal called it a “rural island” near an Amazon delivery center.
That story described the lay of the land: a “roadside silo and barn, figured to be at least 100 years old; 23 acres of leased-out land for growing row crops; two houses; wetlands and a fishing pond; and a ready-mix concrete plant.”
Voit Farm, a 65-acre property located at 3450 Milwaukee St. in Madison, could be home to 1,500 to 1,700 housing units.
The wetlands and pond are on the north side of the property. Less than 30 acres is developable, according to Threshold Development president Joe Krupp.
“What we are doing through this master planning process is creating zoning parcels and three grids,” Krupp said. “All the actual construction will be a separate process of individual buildings that will go through their own process of approval.”
Ald. Grant Foster, who represents District 15 where Voit Farm resides, called Thursday night’s neighborhood meeting “the big picture view.”
“I’m personally excited about the greenway and parklands,” he said. One proposal includes connecting the Garver Path up through the Voit parcel, following along Starkweather Creek. “It’s a great opportunity to expand that green corridor.”
'Effectively status quo'
Foster was among some 67 people attending over Zoom on Thursday, joined by about 30 more in the room at Goodman Community Center. A few people decided to attend both ways — the online discussion looked lively, and disruptions related to the hybrid format made the process awkward. The meeting was recorded, and is now available to view online.
Several attendees were part of a group called Save the Farm, a nonprofit that made its own plan for Voit Farm nearly three years ago. Members continue to advocate for community space, sustainability and conservation on the site.
“We recognized that this 65 acre parcel of land was unique in the country,” said Paul Schechter, a Save the Farm member who spoke during public comment. “We came up with a lot of really inspirational ideas, groundbreaking and different ways of doing development … an urban farm that is the centerpiece, with housing around it.
“What I’m seeing today is a grid network of roads and housing that is identical to the rest of the city. It’s effectively status quo.”
Lance Green identified himself as co-chair of the Friends of Starkweather Creek. He said his group was “glad to hear the emphasis on saving green space.”
“We want to make sure that the land does get put away in perpetuity for conservation,” Green said of that green space. He noted that near the project is Starkweather Park, a conservation park.
“Nobody really even knows or goes to that park yet,” Green said. “And once you guys do all this, it will be available to the public like it’s never been before.”
On Thursday, developers presented a "big picture" proposal for Voit Farm, located north of Milwaukee Street on Madison's east side.
Affordable housing
Much of what Voit Farm will be is still unclear. Socha, the TKWA architect, used an app called Mentimeter to gauge support for elements like a pop-up market, edible landscaping, watercraft rental and space for “nature play.”
“I feel like we’re doing a pledge drive right now,” Socha said as audience responses popped up in real time on the Zoom screen. Attendees expressed support for protecting water quality, wildlife and urban agriculture.
One recurring piece of feedback was related to affordable housing. Rich Arnesen at Stone House Development said the project will use three methods to approach this: applying for federal Section 42 low-income housing tax credits; partnering with nonprofits on “new owner-occupied affordable housing” and working with other nonprofits on affordable housing that does not involve tax credits.
“With Section 42 credits, it’s competitive,” Arnesen said. “So we can’t say ‘we’re going to X number of affordable units or projects’ because it’s competitive, and we can’t guarantee we’re going to get them.
“But our plan is to do at least one large Section 42 project, a number of owner-occupied affordable housing (units) and then hopefully another affordable housing project of a medium size, which would mean 50 to 70 units of affordable housing that does not involve tax credits.
“It’s a work in progress,” Arnesen said.
What's possible
Socha also emphasized that this project is early in the process (one other neighborhood meeting was held on June 30, last summer). The site still needs to be rezoned, and months of additional approvals lay before them.
Krupp said the team is going to “run through the approval process in 2023.” Whether they can begin work by the end of that year is an open question.
“We’re not doing architecture, we’re laying out the plan,” Socha said, earlier in the meeting. But “you better believe we’re thinking about how it will be shaped when it gets to that point, because these parcels will shape what’s possible in terms of building.”
Socha thinks about “doing density really well.” He referenced Danish architect Jan Gehl, whom Socha said “argues that you have to shape the life you want … and then you have to make the conditions and spaces to allow that life to emerge.”
“We want community, we want walking and cycling places to stay,” Socha said. “Well, then you have to start to create the public realm that supports that — the sidewalk, the benches, the trees, the conditions that make you want to do these things. Buildings have to then further support their use.”
