PLK Communities, the developer behind Norwood’s Factory 52, is planning to invest $90 million to transform a “long-vacant riverfront industrial site in Newport” into “a large mixed-use development,” the Cincinnati Business Courier reports. The project, on the site of a former Newport Steel Co. industrial facility, would bring “nearly 200 apartments and a commercial user” to the west side of Newport, according to the article. The site has been vacant since the sale of the steel facility in 1981.
The Newport Board of Commissioners approved “the issuance of industrial revenue bonds not to exceed $90 million for the full project” as part of a “40-year incentive deal including a property tax abatement.” PLK has agreed to “payments in lieu of taxes, or PILOT payments, to Newport Independent Schools for the duration of the agreement.” The school district would receive payments of $240,000 annually to start, “with the sums increasing as property values increase.” Currently the district receives $21,120. The residential apartments will be rented at rates that “constitute naturally occurring affordable housing,” meaning they will be affordable to households making 74% to 77% of the area’s median income. The community “would feature green spaces, pedestrian-friendly infrastructure, a dog park and a clubhouse with a pool, a clubroom, an amenity room, coworking space and the leasing office.” For more, read the full article (subscription may be required).
