Racine officials celebrated a ribbon-cutting this week for new townhomes in the city's Lincoln-King neighborhood, marking a visible milestone in a nearly $100 million investment aimed at rebuilding one of the north side's most historically distressed corridors. The event, held Thursday, brought together residents, city staff, and elected leaders to mark progress on a project years in the making.
According to the City of Racine, Wisconsin Government, the townhomes are just one piece of a broader neighborhood investment that also includes major public infrastructure improvements, new health care services, and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center. The Townhomes at Lincoln-King development ultimately calls for 33 units spread across eight buildings, with full completion expected by late January 2027 following this month's initial ribbon-cutting, as reported by The Journal Times. Construction on the eight buildings began in spring 2025.
A Contractor and a Rebid Process
KGI Construction Group LLC was selected as general contractor for the 33-unit build by the City of Racine Community Development Authority, according to the Racine County Economic Development Corporation. The firm secured the contract following a public rebidding process, the economic development group notes. The housing effort also received a $15 million state grant funded through the American Rescue Plan Act, per the city's Facebook announcement.
Beyond the city-sponsored townhomes, Habitat for Humanity of Racine & Kenosha Counties broke ground on two additional single-family homes along Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive within the same project site, according to WGTD. Site preparation for those dwellings began in mid-2025, the station reports.
Closing a Long-Standing Health Care Gap
The townhomes sit within a larger $68 million, 75,000-square-foot community campus that will house the new Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, the relocated Racine Public Health Department, and a new community health clinic operated by Pillar Health, according to Forward Community Investments. The health facility is designed to serve more than 4,700 patients annually. Prior to the project, Racine was the largest city in Wisconsin without a Federally Qualified Health Center, leaving low-income residents without a localized option for sliding-scale medical, dental, and behavioral care, the same source notes. Financing for the health center included $47 million in New Markets Tax Credit support.
That gap carried real weight in a neighborhood facing entrenched economic hardship. Demographic and economic analyses classify Lincoln-King as one of the most distressed urban areas in Wisconsin, with more than 25% of adults aged 25 and older living in poverty and homeownership rates lagging behind surrounding areas, according to the Racine County Eye. City leaders have pointed to that context in prioritizing affordable homeownership along the corridor.
Built to Net Zero, Backed by State Dollars
The new community and health center was engineered as Racine's first Net Zero energy municipal building, incorporating geothermal heating and cooling, rooftop and canopy solar photovoltaics, and rainwater harvesting, per the City of Racine. The building's design was led by architecture firm SmithGroup.
In May, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers awarded a $2 million state grant to the city for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center through the bipartisan Non-State Grant Program in the 2025-27 state budget, according to Urban Milwaukee. That state program allocated $50 million total across 71 community projects statewide. That same month, the Racine Planning Heritage and Design Commission approved new Tax Incremental Districts and expanded policy rules allowing homeowners within a half-mile of TID boundaries to access home repair grants and down-payment assistance, WGTD reported. The move has stirred local policy debate over the city's reliance on tax increment financing.
Nearly 6,000 Voices Shaped the Plan
City officials say the redevelopment reflects direct resident input rather than a top-down blueprint. Community engagement identified affordable and attainable homeownership, safe community spaces, and access to health care as top priorities for the neighborhood, according to the city's Facebook post. The consultation campaign, conducted by Payne Consulting in 2022 and 2023, engaged more than 5,800 residents to establish project goals, according to the City of Racine. Officials have also clarified that the community facility will preserve the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. name.
City leaders describe the effort as one that has drawn in residents, city staff, elected leaders, local organizations, and partners at the local, state, and federal levels. The new townhomes, they say, create fresh opportunities for homeownership and support a stronger, more connected Lincoln-King neighborhood as the rest of the campus moves toward completion in the months ahead.
