Luxury apartments in downtown Wilmington planned

A planned 231-unit luxury apartment complex expected to break ground this summer would bridge the gap between decades-old redevelopment efforts along Market Street and a proposed creative district just west of downtown, according to downtown boosters.

Rob Snowberger, a development manager for Wilmington real estate developer Buccini/Pollin Group, presented the first detailed look at the project Tuesday before a group of about 175 business and civic leaders.

They were gathered for the annual meeting of the Wilmington Renaissance Corp., a public-private partnership between government officials and local corporations. The group is spearheading a $50 million plan to develop live-work spaces for creative professionals in the historic Quaker Hill neighborhood.

Spread over two high-rise buildings, the Residences at Midtown Park will take over the former sites of Mid-Town Parking Garage, Ninth Street Books and other retail stores. The development will occupy most of the block bounded by Ninth, Orange, Eighth and Shipley streets, helping to increase foot traffic in an area that's virtually deserted on the weekends.

Buccini/Pollin also plans to demolish a building at 817 N. Market St. to create an open-air plaza next to the Chelsea Tavern. Called Burton Place, the plaza will serve as a passageway from the apartments to the Grand and other Market Street attractions, while commemorating the property's civil rights history.

The Eagle Coffee Shoppe used to sit nearby on Ninth Street between Orange and Shipley streets. In 1958, the shop denied service to then-City Councilman William H. "Dutch" Burton because he was black. Burton sued the Wilmington Parking Authority, which owned the building at the time, and won in Chancery Court before the Delaware Supreme Court overturned the decision. Later, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Burton.

In 2013, Buccini/Pollin officials said Midtown Park would be a mix of a new parking garage, apartments and retail stores. Monthly rents have not been disclosed, but another Buccini/Pollin luxury apartment complex, the Residences at Harlan Flats along the Riverfront, starts at $1,465 a month for a one-bedroom unit.

Snowberger focused on the residential component during his presentation, but declined further comment through a company spokeswoman.

Public backing

Records show the community has invested heavily in Buccini/Pollin and other developers linked to the creative district since Renaissance Corp. pitched the idea last year.

The proposal attempts to lure artists and other creative professionals to the area with tax breaks, housing subsidies, spruced-up gathering spaces and round-the-clock arts programming.

Buccini/Pollin President Chris Buccini was a founding partner of Renaissance and is its board vice chairman.

With assets totaling $4 billion, including 26 hotels, 6 million square feet of office and retail space and 10 residential communities, Buccini/Pollin has been the single largest recipient of city development and redevelopment money since 2002.

The company, through its various subsidiaries, received nearly $2.9 million, or more than half of all state downtown development grant money awarded in March. The grants are intended to spur commercial, residential and mixed-use development in Wilmington, Dover and Seaford.

Another $244,000 in state funding went to the Wilmington Housing Partnership, a nonprofit affordable housing developer chaired by Buccini/Pollin co-founder Robert Buccini.

In February, the Wilmington Housing Partnership received $840,000 from the state to help develop Wilmington's Eastside. The money came from JPMorgan Chase settlement money.

The grants made directly to Buccini/Pollin subsidiaries include $1 million for the Midtown Park development at 820 N. Orange St. and $757,000 for Market Street Village, which will include 77 residences on North Market Street offered to charter school teachers at below-market rates.

All told, Buccini/Pollin plans to add nearly 400 apartment units to Wilmington by August 2016.

The developer is reportedly interested in acquiring the Hotel du Pont at 11th and Market streets, after buying three parking lots used by the hotel. Company officials have declined comment.

Attending the Renaissance meeting Tuesday, Gov. Jack Markell praised developers like Buccini/Pollin for taking a gamble on Wilmington. He urged the public to support new developments that contribute to a vital downtown.

"We've come so far, so high, and we want that to continue," he said.

Wilmington Mayor Dennis P. Williams did not attend the event, but sent Chief of Staff Cleon Cauley, who said, "The heart of Wilmington is with our arts."

Indeed, downtown supporters hope the creative district, a 25-block area bounded by Fourth, Ninth, Market and Washington streets will increase the city's tax base, foster a built-in audience for more than 50 cultural institutions in the wider area, reduce crime and create jobs. Today, Quaker Hill is largely an African-American community of renters.

"It's really important to have that mixed-income community, where folks are all mingling together," said Carrie Gray, Renaissance's managing director.

"There will definitely still be affordable housing opportunities in the neighborhoods," she continued. "Nobody is being displaced where they're currently living."

Wilmington is close to having a critical mass of residents to help fuel economic growth, according to Mark Fields, executive director of the Grand.

"There just haven't been enough projects that have come online to convince people that things have truly shifted," he said.

To that end, Interfaith Community Housing, a faith-based, nonprofit affordable-housing developer, will begin work this summer on gutting six vacant homes in Quaker Hill between Fifth and Sixth streets and Washington and West streets. The developer will create 10 units of live-work housing for creative professionals, including three single-family homes and three condo buildings.

One-bedroom condo units with a separate studio space would sell for about $55,000, while two-to-three-bedroom homes would cost about $130,000, Gray said.

The total development cost of about $1.5 million is more than twice the cost to simply level the buildings and rebuild, she said. But the creative district was interested in preserving the buildings' historic character. Interfaith has a list of five interested buyers, most of them first-time homeowners, she said.

The state has paid for nearly half of the project, or $743,000, with the JPMorgan Chase settlement money. The city of Wilmington also plans to donate three of the buildings to Interfaith, Gray said.

In all, the creative district plan calls for as many as 50 housing units at below-market rates and possible temporary waivers on state income taxes, and water and sewer bills. The Longwood Foundation has awarded a $300,000, two-year grant to Renaissance to help implement the plan.

Other plans for the creative district this year include a patriotic-themed mural project at a home for former homeless veterans at Ninth and Washington streets. Philadelphia-based NextFab is scoping out Wilmington for a possible third location for its high-tech workspace.

And the WRC is a finalist for a $250,000 grant through ArtPlace America, a Washington, D.C.-based public-private partnership. The grant would pay to create murals, pocket parks and funky gathering spaces along Seventh Street. A decision will be made next month.

Taken together, these projects will help erase the perception that downtown Wilmington is a dangerous place to hang out, according to downtown boosters.

"It would encourage more businesses to be open on the weekends and even later" during the week, said Tina Marabito, 33, who owns Poppycock Tattoos and Piercing. The shop, along with Marabito's residence above, is at Eighth and Orange streets near the planned Midtown Park development.

Marabito said she'd consider opening her shop on Sundays if there were more residents nearby. Right now, she serves a mix of businesspeople, police and lawyers on weekdays and neighborhood regulars on Saturdays.

She likes the idea of bringing in wealthier renters.

"People who have more money can spend money in the city," she said. "And that's better for the economy."

News Journal reporter Jeff Mordock contributed to this report.

Contact Margie Fishman at (302) 324-2882, on Twitter @MargieTrende or mfishman@delawareonline.com.

To read the full Creative District plan, visit www.bigideaswilmington.com.