Bloomfield/Schon officials have said they expect to begin the project later this fall, and it could take 18 to 21 months to complete.
City staff is backing the request for a local tier tax abatement through the Community Reinvestment Area Program at 100% for 15 years.
Among the financing is $3.5 million in Ohio historic tax credits announced at the end of 2024.
Credit: Michael D. Pitman
Credit: Michael D. Pitman
“They’re working with their contractors right now to come up with costs,” said Jody Gunderson, Hamilton’s Economic Development manager. “We just had communication with them. They’re trying to get some of the numbers in order.”
Ken Schon, a principal at Bloomfield/Schon, told city council in June, when the board approved the redevelopment project, they were talking with a few lenders and working with tax credit investors.
Many on city council have been vocal in their support of the project, which has been seen by many as a catalyst for revitalizing the Lindenwald neighborhood.
Schon told the Journal-News after a community meeting in April that redeveloping the former woolen mill will help revitalize the neighborhood, but it isn’t the sole answer. “Hopefully ... that will help reinvigorate some of this across the street,” he said of some of the vacant storefronts on the west side of Pleasant Avenue.
Bloomfield/Schon has a track record of taking old factories and transforming them into market-rate apartments and retail spaces, including in 2011 with the former American Can Factory and in 2017 with the former Peters Cartridge Factory. Both projects included more than 100 market-rate apartments and more than 10,000 square feet of retail space.
In addition to 125 apartments and 7,000 square feet of retail space, the Shuler-Benninghofen project will feature a surface lot (which includes community spaces) and indoor parking, as well as a community greenspace.
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