12-02-2025
Plan envisions housing for developmentally disabled adults in growing section of Hartland
HARTLAND - In a suddenly booming development area near the village's northwest corner, a niche developer has apartments in mind for a particular underserved group: adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Cherry Faith Properties has presented a conceptual plan for a narrow, triangular-shaped property along the west side of Palmer Drive — notably within a broader neighborhood that saw the opening of a new Kwik Trip in 2024 and is the subject of a major residential development plan by Three Leaf Partners.
Under the name Cherry on Palmer, the development would consist of 26 one-and two-bedroom apartment units, including 13 units listed as "affordable," in a single building complex, plus a separate community room building on the south edge.
But it's the purpose of the residential project that stands out.
"My objective is to partner with a service provider that can offer services to residents with intellectual disabilities," real estate developer Dujuan Cherry said in an email to the Journal Sentinel on Tuesday. "The proposed development in this area addresses an essential need for affordable housing and aims to enhance the quality of life for the surrounding community, local employers, and residents."
To that end, Cherry said he will seek "alternate funding sources" from groups tuned into such development initiatives. They could include HOME funds from the Waukesha County Consortium, the Waukesha County GROW Fund and MEDC, and support from the Housing Assistance Council.
For now, the plan is still a concept, meaning it is being viewed by village officials as a working document subject to possible changes ahead of any formal approvals. The plan was discussed briefly last October, but a more detailed concept, with illustrations and maps, was viewed by the Village Board on Monday night.
The Plan Commission will do likewise on Feb. 17.
"It's just a basic review to see if the developer is on the right track for that piece of land," Village Manager Ryan Bailey confirmed in an email Monday.
The Palmer Drive property, situated south of Hill Street's north and south ends and adjacent to Easy Street to the west, would have to pass several stages of approval. If all goes according to plan, the Plan Commission would consider rezoning and a planned unit development proposal in March and April before potentially referring the plan to the Village Board on April 28. Under that timeline, a public hearing would be held June 9.
The village must also agree to extend a sewer line to the property.
Cherry said that if all approvals are finalized at that time by June 23, he hopes to break ground on the project in July.
That area of Capitol Drive just east of Highway 83 has seen a considerable push for development since 2023. The biggest is the 45-acre Three Leaf Partners plan, tied to Pat Connaughton, featuring 240 apartments and 27 townhomes within and around the old Hartland Quarry.
That development, plus the Cherry on Palmer plan, would further extend the business base of the local Kwik Trip, which opened along Capitol Drive off Highway 83 last year.
Unlike the Three Leaf Partners development, Cherry is not seeking tax-increment financing dollars from the village to subsidize certain development costs.
Contact reporter Jim Riccioli at
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Hartland discusses housing plan for developmentally disabled adults
