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Council approves $1.4 million TIF loan for Trailside Village pilot workforce housing project
Summary
The City of Hastings approved a plan modification and $1.4 million tax-increment financing loan for a 28‑unit pilot housing project called Trailside Village after a public hearing and discussion about rents, product type and long‑term goals. The measure passed 7–1.
The Hastings City Council on a 7–1 vote approved a plan modification and expedited micro‑TIF request to support Trailside Village, a 28‑unit “build‑to‑rent” pilot housing development planned for about 3.5 acres southeast of East 30th Street and West Laux Drive.
The development team, represented by Dave Rippy of Trailside Village LLC, told the council the project is intended to deliver workforce housing that the team hopes will be rentable now and sellable later. “It’s a long term play for affordable housing, and, we’ll see if it works out,” Rippy told the council during the public hearing.
Nut graf: The council approved a $1,400,000 TIF loan that staff and the developer said is needed to make the project financially feasible. City staff and the Community Redevelopment Authority concluded the pro forma shows a negative cash‑on‑cash return without TIF and that the project would likely not proceed without public gap financing.
City planning and development staff summarized the proposal: the site is in Redevelopment Area 14 and would be developed with duplex and 2–3 unit buildings yielding 28 separate homes (“28 new front doors”), shorter front setbacks and higher density than typical single‑family lots. Chad Binger, the city’s director of development services, said the developer projects the finished development will raise annual tax revenue substantially—staff presented an estimate that the site currently produces about $1,175 in taxes and could generate roughly $150,000 annually after completion.
Rippy and other project partners described the product and financing strategy in detail. Rippy said the homes will be semi‑detached factory‑built units supplied by Chief Industries and that partners include a family foundation and local builders; those partners are providing lower‑cost financing and deferring profit to reduce rents. Rippy said projected monthly rents to break even are roughly $2,200 for the larger duplex units and about $1,800 for smaller triplex units, and that the teams’ exit strategy is to sell units to homeowners over time once equity has built up.
“Right now, we know that in order just to break even… we’re going to have to set our rents at $2,200 a month,” Rippy said. He and staff acknowledged that $2,200 is not inexpensive, but they framed it as lower than comparable new units in larger cities and as part of a broader strategy to add housing supply in Hastings.
Council discussion ranged from project feasibility and the housing supply gap to the long‑term benefit from redeveloping a vacant site. Binger told the council construction could begin quickly if approved: ground acquisition by the end of the month, grading in May and factory units beginning to arrive in July, with a target to have units set before year‑end if scheduling holds. Binger also described a pro forma showing about $7.4 million in projected development cost.
A council member voted against the measure, saying the city needs tax revenue and that deferring tax increment reduces short‑term municipal receipts. Council members supporting the project cited the long‑term public benefit of producing new workforce housing and the pilot nature of the proposal.
Ending: The council approved Resolution No. 2025‑17 to modify the redevelopment plan and allow the TIF loan. Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval before the council vote.
