STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU) — Stevens Point officials are moving forward with a proposal for a new apartment complex at the site of the former Kmart on Division Street near the UWSP campus.
City leaders have been discussing the proposal for several weeks, something that Mayor Mike Wiza says has been one of his priorities as Mayor. “[I’ve been trying to] get the council involved early in the project so they can share their hopes and goals for the project. Then the developer can talk with their engineers and architects to incorporate some of those.” He adds that transparency allows the project to come back to the Council without any surprises or concerns.
A unique feature of the complex that did surprise some was covered bike racks in the parking lot. Wiza says developers wanted that based on the proximity to campus. “The developer explained that yes that’s what their intention was, they showed us a slightly different angle [of the design] and then yes it was apparent. So I think everything is pretty squared away.”
Wiza adds that the covered bike parking area will make the apartments attractive to UWSP students, facility, and staff. However, he also likes what they will bring to the Division Street corridor in general as construction booms on one of the main entry points to the city. “I don’t think they would turn away anyone who wants a good, new apartment in general.”
The project came together quickly after the store closed. Kmart never owned the land for the building, and when it became obvious that the store would close developers began planning for the plot’s next stage. While Wiza would like to take credit for that, he says it’s all on the developers. “It was really kind of a silver lining in the fact that developer had a concept on paper and was able to turn that around pretty quickly. I think it’s a big win for the city.”
The concept now moves on to the full council who will take it up on April 16th.
