A plan to redevelop the Village is one step closer to city council after being approved by the Delaware-Muncie Metropolitan Plan Commission on Thursday.
All voting members of the commission who were present voted in favor of recommending the proposed university Village overlay district to the city council to review during their meeting on April 1 at 7:30 p.m.
The new plan splits the Village into four distinct areas, with Area 1 including the commercial and retail section.
Marta Moody, executive director of DMMPC, said they want to make the area more attractive while creating a distinct brand and identity, with an emphasis on walkability, bikability and sustainability.
“Whatever is done should be comprehensive in scope and it will achieve a change in perception for the area,” Moody said. “It’s centered around the idea of a vibrant commercial core.”
A task force created by the DMMPC in 2012 held a public input session in November that supported and reaffirmed the basic principles of the overlay project, Moody said.
New development companies wishing to invest in the area must submit a development plan and be approved by a five-person council.
Existing developments will not be affected by the plan’s restrictions unless they want to expand their property by more than 20 percent.
The plan has received support from interested investors and Muncie residents alike, including David Brint of Brinshore Development, a real estate development company based in Northbrook, Ill.
“The development standards called for in your proposed overlay district will not discourage investment from occurring,” Brint said in a letter written to the commission. “Our experience with similar projects has shown these standards are seen as a positive factor for encouraging high quality new investments in neighborhoods.”
Brinshore had hoped to start construction on an 80-unit low-income housing project near the Village this year, but were denied the proper tax credits.
Chase Sorrick of Investment Property Advisor, said the company he works for is planning a multi-million dollar investment in the Village area and have worked with similar overlay standards in other communities.
“[Past] developments that we’ve done, and this one that we plan, would not have been possible without overlay standards that we’re talking about here,” Sorrick said.
Sorrick said IPA wants to begin construction in the area by August or September.
Muncie resident Deb Wise, who owns commercial property in the Village with her husband Jerry, said she supports the overlay plan and believes the new standards will take away the risks from developments.
“If we want to see improvement, and we don’t want to keep getting what we got, we can’t keep doing what we’re doing,” she said.
If city council approves the plan in April, it will have a chance for final action on May 2.
