Developer outlines plan for 154 Miami Avenue; sewer main extension and rezoning to R‑3 are key hurdles

A development team representing Iconic Homes told the North Bend Village Council on Feb. 24 that a proposed residential project at 154 Miami Avenue will require a sanitary sewer main extension and a rezoning from B‑1 (commercial) to R‑3 (residential multifamily) for the site to be built as planned.

Jason Lane of Iconic Homes introduced engineer Tim Dwire of Open Architecture, who described early engineering work and a sewer-availability inquiry to the MSD (metropolitan sewer district). Dwire said MSD indicated capacity exists in the regional system but that the nearest sanitary sewer is not close enough to the property and would require an extension. "In order to achieve that, we're gonna need approximately 930 to 950 linear feet of sewer mainline extension," Dwire said.

Dwire said the developer will build the sewer main to MSD specifications, after which the district will inspect and accept the line for future maintenance. He said the design team is trying to route the new main to minimize saw‑cutting and repaving of Miami Avenue so the village’s planned SKIP paving (village skip/repaving program) can be coordinated with any necessary pavement cuts. The village’s engineer, Jennifer Bader, will review timing and whether the village can defer its paving contract to avoid repaving and then cutting the street shortly afterward.

Early cost guidance ranged widely because underground conditions matter: Dwire estimated a per‑foot range roughly equivalent to $100 to $250 per linear foot depending on depth, rock, and how much street needs reconstruction — putting a preliminary project sewer cost in a range roughly between $100,000 and $250,000.

Lane also said Iconic Homes is pursuing rezoning of the parcel (currently mapped as B‑1) to R‑3 to allow single‑family detached homes or rowhouses; he said the developer’s preference is to build single‑family detached product and that the financial model would not support larger apartment buildings. The developer agreed to consider legal or binding mechanisms to limit future use if council needs assurance that the site will not be sold and redeveloped as higher‑density apartments.

Why it matters: The sewer extension would enable redevelopment of a long‑vacant parcel and potentially add new housing stock in North Bend, but it also would trigger significant capital work in the public right‑of‑way and may require coordination of village paving plans, MSD approvals, Ohio EPA permits for mainline extensions, and financing decisions (TIF/CRA or developer reimbursement).

Council direction and next steps: Council members asked the developer to stay in close coordination with Jennifer Bader and village staff. The developer will pursue a sewer availability application, MSD permitting and an Ohio EPA mainline extension permit as needed, and will return with refined routing, a permit timeline (Dwire estimated about 3–4 months of permitting and drawings before construction) and firm cost estimates. Council also discussed potential public financing tools such as a CRA or TIF reimbursement mechanism to share sewer costs if the village wishes to do so.

Direct quotes - "In order to achieve that, we're gonna need approximately 930 to 950 linear feet of sewer mainline extension," — Tim Dwire, Open Architecture. - "It could be anywhere from a hundred dollars a foot to $250 a foot, which puts anywhere from a hundred thousand dollars to $250,000 plus, of what this could cost," — Tim Dwire.