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Executive director reports on Theta health project, Boatworks property sale and Oshkosh Avenue CIP design
Summary
Staff reported receipt of developer plans for a multi-level health facility at the former JELD‑WEN site, confirmed purchasers for Boatworks parcels and a planned demolition bid, and flagged a 2024 CIP design item for Oshkosh Avenue at Sawyer.
The Redevelopment Authority’s executive director report covered a range of project updates: conceptual plans from a health-services developer for the former JELD‑WEN site, progress on the Boatworks property sale and planned demolition, and a capital-improvement-program (CIP) item to begin design work on Oshkosh Avenue at Sawyer.
Kelli (staff member) showed visual materials and said the city received plans from a developer (recorded in the meeting as “Theta Freighter”) for the former Morgan District/JELD‑WEN site. Kelli described the project as having two main sections: a hospital portion (including an ER) and a surgical/outpatient center with multi-level doctor offices. She said neighborhood meetings and a plan commission workshop had gone well and that staff expect the proposal to be before the city council in November (staff cited November 14 as the likely council date). Kelli said the design includes 18 beds in the northeast wing as presented (eight emergency beds and 10 outpatient beds), and that the developer and staff are discussing taxability distinctions between clinical space and offices; she referenced Ascension and Aurora in prior similar discussions.
Kelli also reported that discussions with Chet Wiesenberg and Tim Hess indicate they will purchase RDA and city parcels for the Boatworks project. The RDA is preparing documents to close on the property and the city plans to put a bid out this fall to demolish the sanitation garage so the buyer can proceed with phase 2 testing on the west side. On the record, staff said there is no current agreement requiring the buyer to build within a year; a board member asked staff to explore whether a build-out timeline or return-of-property clause could be added to the sale agreement.
Finally, staff noted a CIP item in the 2024 budget to begin design work for the Oshkosh Avenue at Sawyer intersection; staff cautioned that design does not guarantee construction in the next few years but called it a positive step toward completing the intersection.
The report was informational; no formal authority action was taken on these project updates during this meeting.
