16-03-2025
Goshen OKs agreement for 18 townhomes on Millrace
GOSHEN — A set of townhomes will line the Millrace Canal under a revised plan adopted by the city this week.
The Row on the Millrace LLC will build 18 residential units spread among three townhome buildings under a development agreement that the Goshen Board of Works passed Thursday. The site is a one-acre brownfield property in the 500 block of River Race Drive which has a rocky history of stalled developments.
The latest effort began when Goshen stair maker Viewrail submitted a plan in June 2023 for a $16 million apartment complex with around 50 units. It described the housing complex, which originally was dubbed Millrace Flats, as a luxury apartment building.
The project had applied for funding under Indiana's READI 2.0 program but wasn't chosen. The change to a townhome plan reflects a realization that the infrastructure demands for an apartment building may be too much for the land, according to Shane Dyer, an architect with Viewrail.
'We made a switch up a year ago just because of the economics of it. The scale needed to make apartments work were probably going to cause a lot of remonstration,' he told the Goshen Redevelopment Commission on Tuesday. 'With the amenities we needed, it was just too dense, we felt.'
The redevelopment commission passed the agreement after extending the deadlines for certain project milestones by four months. Under the agreement that the board of works approved, TROTM LLC must have the first structure finished by July 1, 2026, and finish all townhomes by July 1, 2029.
Each townhome is expected to be around 2,500 square feet. The capital investment in the project is expected to be around $15 million.
The city will be responsible for certain infrastructure improvements and utility issues. Those include funding sidewalk relocations and curb adjustments as well as permitting connections to city stormwater infrastructure.
Rocky past
Goshen began cleaning up the former factory land along the Millrace Canal around 20 years ago. Many industrial facilities along the 14-acre area dated back to the 1860s.
The city received grants totaling $400,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to look for petroleum and other hazardous substances in the soil. The city used more than $2 million in state and federal funding to clean up the area along the canal and remove contaminated soil.
New developments over the years have included trails, housing and a restaurant.
The one acre of waterfront land between Monroe and Purl streets was leased to Insight Development around six years ago, which planned to build condominiums. The city took the land back after developers failed to meet the terms of their agreements by not beginning construction.
Redevelopment board members wanted to have assurances in place that the new plan will move forward.
TROTM LLC will buy the land from the city for $1 and the city must transfer it to the company by May 1. The city will help the developer obtain a site status letter from the Indiana Brownfield Program and fund the completion of a Phase 1 Environmental Assessment within six months of closing.
One of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management's requirements for the site is that a two-foot cap of clean soil cover any areas of greenspace. The redevelopment commission will send soil data to IDEM and conduct additional sampling if needed, as well as funding additional work that may be needed such as excavating, transporting and disposing of soil.
The costs of soil work are unknown but Goshen Redevelopment Director Becky Hutsell said around 97 percent of the land will be covered by hard surface.
The city will retain a $3 million mortgage on the real estate until minimum investment thresholds are met, according to the development agreement. The city must also receive quarterly reports detailing project expenses and the redevelopment commission will have the right to audit the developer's financial records related to the project.
