<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0muEWw_1FFdMv4O00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0muEWw_1FFdMv4O00" width="990" height="660" ><figcaption>Ceremonial groundbreaking of The Avenue, an affordable housing apartment project. Photo by Kevin Boneske.</figcaption></figure>North 14th Avenue south of Georgia Street was lined up with vehicles late in the morning of Sept. 9 when a formal groundbreaking ceremony took place for The Avenue, a new affordable housing development being built southwest of the intersection. Developer Brian Spoerl of Spoerl Commercial has started excavation work on the first phase, a three-story, 39-unit apartment building. The project received low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA), and the city approved a development agreement that provides tax-increment financing incentives through Tax Incremental District (TID) #6.Spoerl, who was able to purchase a city-owned lot for $100 as part of the building site, thanked Sturgeon Bay officials for their efforts in making the project possible.“It’s one of the best communities I’ve done any development work in, and [I] appreciate their partnership and the leadership of Mayor [David] Ward and of [City Administrator] Josh Van Lieshout,” he said.Ward said there is a need for additional affordable housing in Sturgeon Bay, for which he’s glad to see the first phase of the project underway.“It’s good to see this, and it will add to our affordable housing stock, which is extremely important,” said Ward, who also noted the eight units the building will have for people with special needs.Van Lieshout said the city needed to “resolve some very serious housing issues in the community,” with Spoerl filling some of that need. Spoerl said he expects the first building to be ready for occupancy next June, with apartments available to households earning between 30-60% of the area median income, and he anticipates the building will be fully occupied by the end of 2027.“We’ll have one-, two- and three-bedroom units, with rents as low as $479 per month,” he said.Spoerl said the building will meet the state’s “Green Built” standards and have features such as rooftop solar panels, high-efficiency heat pumps for heating, ventilation and air conditioning, and water heaters, as well as fiber broadband service.The second phase will include a 20-unit apartment building on the adjacent parcel to the north where Evenson Laundry is now located. WHEDA recently awarded Spoerl a $1,913,024, 30-year, 0% interest loan through its Vacancy-to-Vitality program, which helps convert vacant commercial properties into workforce or senior housing.Spoerl said the second-phase apartments would be available to households earning between 80-100% of the area median income, for which he hopes to begin construction while the first phase is underway, and have the second building ready for occupancy in 2028.WHEDA Community and Economic Development Officer Lydia Van Thiel said “affordable housing is extremely challenging to develop,” especially in Door County, where there are additional challenges to finance by being in a tourist community.“It really is a big community effort to bring a project like this to the finish line, get all the funding pieces together and get us to this groundbreaking ceremony,” she said. “WHEDA is proud to partner through our competitive housing tax credit program.”</div></body>

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North 14th Avenue south of Georgia Street was lined up with vehicles late in the morning of Sept. 9 when a formal groundbreaking ceremony took place for The Avenue, a new affordable housing development being built southwest of the intersection. Developer Brian Spoerl of Spoerl Commercial has started excavation work...

Groundbreaking Held for Affordable Housing Apartment Project

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North 14th Avenue south of Georgia Street was lined up with vehicles late in the morning of Sept. 9 when a formal groundbreaking ceremony took place for Th

Groundbreaking Held for Affordable Housing Apartment Project

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