Work on greatly-needed workforce housing has officially begun as part of a collaboration involving developer Kevin L. Berger, the Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority (IHCDA), the town of LaPaz, and Marshall County Crossroads — the regional planning group who recently brought the Stellar designation to Marshall County.
The project is part of Marshall County’s Stellar plan designed to improve the quality of life in our already great hometowns like LaPaz, Indiana. It uses Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) to enable the development. Tax credits for the project were awarded by the Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority (IHDCA).
LaPaz Commons is to be located on Troyer Street just off of Michigan Avenue and represents the first new housing construction in LaPaz in some time. Culver Sand Hill Farm LLC is the developer for this project. Easterday Construction Co., Inc. is the General Contractor. SRKM Architecture is the Project Architect. First Farmers Bank & Trust has provided the permanent loan financing and CREA has provided the tax credit financing.
“LaPaz Commons is indicative of where LaPaz is heading,” says Roger Ecker, town council President. “We have a great location, great schools, and are investing in infrastructure. We expect that LaPaz Commons will be the beginning of significant homebuilding here.”
Says Ecker: “Thanks to the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority that assisted Mr. Berger, and the Marshall County Crossroads group. We should all look forward to watching this grow.”
LaPaz Commons is party of the Riverside Commons 48-unit development with 40 units in Plymouth and eight units in LaPaz. The groundbreaking for Plymouth occurred last November. The LaPaz units break down into two flats and six townhomes, and are expected to become available late in 2023.
Kevin Berger is lead partner in Culver Sand Hill Farm LLC, and is the principal owner of Easterday Construction of Culver, who is building the project. Sand Hill Farm submitted an application for tax credits in the Fall of 2020 and was one of the only 21 out of 51 applications awarded credits in February 2021. Berger states, “We were pleased to have the opportunity to work with Marshall County Crossroads on this project. The competition is fierce and we would have been unlikely to have achieved this without the set-aside garnered by Marshall County’s Stellar designation.”
“Culver Sand Hill Farm was formed to help Culver with their entry level housing initiative” adds Berger. “We completed our first LIHTC project, The Paddocks, in Culver in 2021. That facility has 100% occupancy. We believe we will have the same success filling this need in Plymouth and LaPaz.”
Brent Martin, chair of Crossroads’ housing subcommittee, states “we are thrilled to see quality workforce housing being developed in LaPaz. The team worked for two years to get the Stellar designation, and we are glad to have played a supporting role.”
About Marshall County Crossroads:
Marshall County Crossroads is a collaboration of leaders from across the region that engages with and inspires our communities to connect, collaborate, and create high-quality hometowns. This is accomplished by creating healthy, livable, thriving, and sustainable communities that provide current and future residents of all ages, races, and genders the best hometowns in the Midwest to live, work and play.
