Developers show 'estate‑style' workforce housing concept; city hears retail recruitment data

Consultants and developers presented an initial site concept for workforce housing on the Kronberg property and previewed next steps for cost estimating and financing.

Leticia Pirtle (S6) of MB General Construction Services said the concept targets a different subset of workforce housing—"more of a custom style, estate style home"—and showed typologies and material palettes intended to create a distinctive curb appeal for the new neighborhood. She said the first draft yields about 64 parcels but that the number could be revised down to as few as 29 as the architect refines lot sizes and phasing.

Pirtle stressed that the team will do ROM costing to estimate road, utility, and stormwater infrastructure so the city and developer can assess what lot prices would be necessary to recoup public investment, and she said the team will meet with Heidi at Baker Tilly to explore financing mechanisms. Mayor O'Dell (S5) and other commissioners raised questions about target lot price, replatting for larger lots and whether the option agreement maps include additional parcels; consultants said survey work and costing will clarify those points.

The commission also received an update on retail recruitment from Retail Strategies. Chair (S1) summarized the firm's findings on store visit data across the region: the Rochester Kroger ranked second in a regional set of eight Kroger stores, while Rochester's Walmart ranked 11th among 11 Walmart stores considered (the Walmart result reflects a smaller‑format store in town). The firm will prepare a retailer portfolio and assist with site matching for local business recruitment.

Next steps: ROM costing and financial analysis by the developer team; follow‑up meetings with Baker Tilly; Retail Strategies to continue retailer outreach and provide a site/portfolio for city consideration.