More than 7 years in the making, $60 million Woodward West project starts construction – Crain’s Detroit Business

Construction has started on an apartment project in Detroit that was first announced as a medical office building in 2013.

The $60 million Woodward West project is slated to have 204 apartments upon its expected completion in summer 2022, the developer said Thursday in a news release.

In addition, it is anticipated to have about 24,800 square feet of retail space on the nearly 2-acre site at Woodward Avenue and Stimson Street in the south part of Midtown.

Detroit-based developers The Platform LLC and Queen Lillian II LLC are leading the project.

When the project was first announced in April 2013, it was expected to be medical office space at 3439 Woodward Ave. However, the surging apartment market prompted Queen Lillian to shift directions several years ago.

Twenty percent of the 204 units which consists of 114 studios, 78 one-bedrooms and 12 two-bedrooms are slated for those making 80 percent or less than the federally-designed Area Median Income. The AMI includes suburban Detroit, and is $62,800 for a family of two and $78,500 for a four-person household, according to the state. That means that 80 percent of that is $50,240 for a two-person household and $62,800 for a four-person household.

The inclusion of suburban Detroit for determining what housing is affordable in Detroit is often criticized because the suburban household incomes skew upward the city's household income.

Queen Lillian II consists of Chris Jackson, a minority owner and former staffer to former Detroit City Council President Gil Hill and former part owner of Greektown Casino-Hotel; and James Jenkins, who is majority owner of the company and is president and CEO of Detroit-based Jenkins Construction Inc.

Detroit-based The Platform, which is run by Peter Cummings, was brought in as a development partner in 2018.

In August 2018, Crain's reported that there was to be a second Kuzzo's Chicken & Waffles location in the development. However, Jackson said Thursday that they are still in discussions with the restaurant even though there isn't a signed lease yet .

"Due to COVID and the lens being on closing, we have not focused extensively on the retail," Jackson said. "Now that we have closed and started construction, we plan to get more aggressive with our tenant negotiations."

Earlier this year, the Michigan Strategic Fund approved the project for a $5.3 million Michigan Community Revitalization Program performance-based loan. Other public funding includes a $2.2 million Detroit Economic Growth Corp. loan. CIBC Bank is the senior lender, and Capital Impact Partners and Invest Detroit provided pre-development loans, according to a news release.

Detroit-based Sachse Construction is the contractor and Detroit-based Hamilton Anderson Associates is the project architect. Detroit-based Center City Properties will manage the apartments when complete.

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More than 7 years in the making, $60 million Woodward West project starts construction - Crain's Detroit Business