La Porte board approves Beachwood Lakes development agreement, developer to finance infrastructure with TIF mechanism

The City of La Porte Board of Public Works and Safety on Aug. 19 approved a development agreement for Beachwood Lakes, a mixed residential project adjacent to Beachwood Golf Course that the city estimates will involve about $30 million in private investment when complete.

Bert Cook, executive director of the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership, told the board the project would include 122 total units: 75 single-family homes (including 15 described as “executive-level”) and 47 town homes. The developer named in the packet is the partnership of John Kavcheck and Redstone Homes.

Cook said the developer will pay $1,865,000 for the land; that payment will be placed in escrow and can be used by the developer to reimburse infrastructure work. The agreement also provides access to up to $3,955,000 in developer financing or a bond to be serviced by property taxes on the new units. Two separate tax-increment financing districts (one residential, one commercial) with 20-year lives are part of the plan to support reimbursement for infrastructure. “All of the risk is on the developer,” Cook said. “We are not taking on additional debt.”

The agreement assigns the developer responsibility for water, wastewater, stormwater and roads. City staff estimated infrastructure costs in today’s dollars could range from about $3 million to $5.5 million; Cook said those costs could change as the project progresses. The agreement calls for the developer to begin construction within a year, with a likely start in spring 2026 if phasing and approvals proceed as expected.

Craig Phillips, speaking for city planning, said the development “provides a really nice step down in terms of use of property” from commercial along Monroe Street into town homes and then single-family homes, including homes that may be more accessible pricewise because of higher density in portions of the plan. City officials said they expect a homeowners association and that the developer will phase infrastructure and construction in a way intended to support sales and reimbursement.

The La Porte City Council had approved the agreement unanimously the night before; the Board of Public Works and Safety approved it by voice vote at the Aug. 19 meeting. The redevelopment commission is scheduled to consider final approval next week.

The plan drew discussion about phasing and access points; city engineering staff said options under consideration include temporary construction access with full public access added as development phases are completed. Board and staff emphasized that reimbursements are tied to completed infrastructure and the generation of property taxes by finished units.

Cook summarized the approach: the developer finances and assumes construction risk, the city escrows the land payment and offers reimbursement pathways through TIF/bonding, and the city does not assume new tax-backed debt for the project.