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La Porte approves PILOT agreement to let developer rehabilitate Country Acres apartments
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Summary
The council approved a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement to support KCG Development’s planned rehabilitation of Country Acres Apartments, a 100-unit low-income property; the plan uses 9% tax credits, includes temporary relocations for short unit-level work, and maps a PILOT schedule beginning at $70,000 in 2027 ramping up over the next decades.
The La Porte Common Council on April 20 voted to approve a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) agreement to facilitate the renovation of Country Acres Apartments, a 100-unit affordable housing complex. The developer, KCG Development, plans a major rehabilitation beginning after closing in May, with construction slated to start July 1 and completion expected in 2027.
Craig Phillips, who the mayor invited to speak, framed the project as a rehabilitation of a problem property that has generated frequent public-safety calls: he told the council the city logged 977 police calls and 272 fire calls to the site over the past five years. Phillips said the owner previously paid roughly $100,000 in property taxes, and the PILOT structure would start at $70,000 (payable in 2028 on 2027 assessments) and ramp in scheduled increments, with an accelerator that would adjust to about $100,000 in 2038, $130,000 in 2048 and a maximum around $169,621 in 2057. Payments under the PILOT would be paid to the city and deposited into an affordable housing fund to support other local housing efforts.
Paul Moore of KCG Development described a roughly $8,000,000 rehabilitation package that will touch roofs, windows, kitchens, bathrooms, new community spaces and accessibility upgrades; the firm intends to provide temporary relocation (about 10–12 days per unit for larger work) and enhanced security measures, including cameras and increased coordination with police during construction. Moore said the property received 9% low-income housing tax credit allocation and will be under extended-use commitments administered by the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA).
Council members asked about resident displacement and security. Phillips and Moore said relocation will be temporary and planned to return residents to improved units; safety and security improvements and a new community room with a police substation are part of the proposals. The PILOT agreement was moved, seconded and approved on a voice vote.
Council members said the project offers a path to rehousing current residents in improved housing and creates an affordable-housing fund for future local needs; the council approved the agreement and authorized staff to finalize documents for closing.
