The first residents of an $11 million housing and commercial development on Lansing’s east side are expected to move in by Nov. 1.
The Allen Place mixed-incoming housing development is the culmination of 14 years of work by the nonprofit Allen Neighborhood Center, which has long occupied space on the same block of Kalamazoo Street, between Allen and Shephard streets.
“We have been so gratified at how many funding organizations and others have come forward to bring this dream to fruition,” said Joan Nelson, director at the Allen Neighborhood Center.
The three-story development includes office and retail space on the first floor and two floors of 21 apartment units. Four apartments are studios, nine are one-bedroom apartments and eight apartments have two bedrooms.
Seven of these apartments will be income-restricted while the other 14 will be listed at market value.
Nelson said this helps ensure that Allen Place apartments can provide housing for low-income families and can generate enough revenue to pay back the money it owes in loans to build the project.
“We thought that a one-third, two-third split made a whole lot of sense,” Nelson said. “It ensures that we are generating enough revenue from rentals that it ensures that we can pay off our debt. As we widdle down our debt, perhaps we can move that to 50/50.”
The first level will include an on-site grocery store, a federally qualified health center and lab and energy-efficient appliances all run on a solar energy powered microgrid developed alongside the Lansing Board of Water and Light. The microgrid will help the building manage and distribute electricity from solar power produced on site.
Brandie Elkren, executive director of strategic planning and development at the Lansing Board of Water and Light, said the project could help boost other renewable energy work in the area.
“The Allen Place development will strengthen the Kalamazoo Street corridor and catalyze similar mixed-use initiatives in this steadily transforming area of the city,” Elkren said in an emailed statement. “Such economic growth coupled with environmentally friendly innovation is a huge plus to our region.”
Allen Neighborhood Center is not normally known for projects of this size. The nonprofit plays host to several other programs like a farmer’s market, an accelerator kitchen to help boost food entrepreneurship and community support programs like Veggie Box, which provides produce to about 700 residents in the area.
“We’re not deep-pocketed, wealthy developers,” Nelson said. “We’re a pretty fair little nonprofit. This is not our bailiwick.”
Tammara McCollum, an entrepreneur who participates in the Allen Neighborhood Center’s accelerator kitchen, said the Allen Place apartments will be beneficial to the neighborhood.
“It’s just going to be great economically for everyone I feel like,” McCollum said. “It’s a really beautiful thing that they’re doing trying to help uplift people, so I think it’ll be really good especially in that neighborhood.”