GRAND FORKS – Dakota Commercial is planning a $42 million, five-acre development of apartments off 47th Avenue South across from the Icon Sports Center.
The development is working its way through the Grand Forks Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council this summer, with plans to begin construction in the spring of 2027 and be complete in 2029. Dakota Commercial President Kevin Ritterman said the second of three phases is planned for the vacant land between 47th Avenue South and the south-end drainway.
“It’s something we’ve been working on for a couple of years, trying to make it work with construction costs and interest rates,” Ritterman said. “This was a good opportunity, a good location to take a look at trying to get this done.”
The plans include approximately 150 units and 10,000 square feet of commercial space in the mixed-use structure that will be five stories.
The first phase in 2014 consisted of 44 townhomes that back onto a residential development south of Optimist Park. The apartments had been planned as part of the final buildout of the 26-acre site, but has evolved to have more units and less commercial space than originally planned.
“There’s just so much commercial in town that you could never fill it,” Craig Tweten, president of Community Contractors, told the Planning and Zoning Commission on June 4.
The mixed-use structure will face 47th Avenue and toward South Washington Street, with commercial on the first floor facing the thoroughfares and residential units facing the townhomes. In the future, there will likely be additional commercial development to the south of the site.
Residents near the development have largely been positive about the development, Ritterman and Tweten said.
“Some are curious when they could move in,” Ritterman said.
At the Planning and Zoning Commission, Tweten added that the concerns raised weren’t so much about the building, but the impacts to traffic and the potential future commercial development on the rest of the site.
As part of the development, Dakota Commercial is in the process of seeking a property tax incentive. On April 21, the City Council approved having Dakota Commercial applying to begin the financial review process. Dakota Commercial is proposing to have the incentive to exceed five years, which means the request will go before the Grand Forks County Commission and the Grand Forks School District for consideration.
There has been debate at the City Council about whether developments should go through the planning and zoning process before being allowed to apply for tax incentives. The tax incentive review and planning and zoning process are occurring simultaneously, which likely will mean a quicker review process, according to city staff.
The development requires a zoning amendment to the planned unit development to increase the allowed density. The Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously moved forward with preliminary approval of the amendment on June 4. The City Council will review the request at its next meeting.
Voigt covers government in Grand Forks and East Grand Forks.
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