KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held on Wednesday, July 27 at Westgate Apartments at 3:30 p.m. at 615 West Kalamazoo Avenue in the Stuart neighborhood.
The event will feature remarks by the project developers, Mayor David Anderson, City Manager Jim Ritsema, State Representative Julie Rogers, and representatives from Michigan Department of Environment Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) and Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).
Westgate Apartments is a two-building mixed-use development with 18 one- or two-bedroom residential units and 12,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space.
Each building also has an accessible unit on the ground floor. It was designed to be environmentally conscious and includes features like rooftop green space and electric vehicle charging stations.
“It’s been a five-year project, and it was made more difficult by Covid, supply chain issues, and labor problems,” said one of the project’s developers William Murphy. “However, my partners and I are very excited to bring new housing and commercial space to the Stuart neighborhood.”
Westgate is located on the former site of an auto repair shop which had been vacant and become blighted. The City of Kalamazoo provided support through the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (BRA) up to $540,000 to remove and dispose of contaminated soil, demolish the blighted building, remove underground storage tanks, and install a vapor mitigation system.
The BRA also helped secure a $400,000 grant from EGLE to help fund environmental cleanup.
“We know how badly we need more housing units in Kalamazoo and every new unit helps,” said Kalamazoo Mayor David Anderson. “It’s wonderful to see this blighted property restored and put to such a valuable use. I appreciate all of the partners and effort that went into making this a reality, especially during the pandemic.”
More information about Westgate is available at https://westgatekzoo.com.
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