Fort Wayne city leaders gathered Tuesday afternoon to break ground on Victory Gardens, a planned 74-home development on the city's southeast side meant to open up homeownership in a part of town that has seen little new residential construction in decades. The homes, a mix of single-family houses, duplexes, townhomes and zero-lot-line units, are expected to sell for between $186,000 and $325,000.
According to WANE 15, the project will rise at 2700 Elmdale Drive within the Tillman–Hessen Cassel Corridor, and it is designed to make homeownership more accessible on the southeast side. The lineup includes 66 three-bedroom homes and eight four-bedroom homes, with the single-family options offered in both ranch and two-story layouts.
City leaders gathered on Tuesday afternoon for the ceremony, and 21Alive describes Victory Gardens as a $24 million project bringing the 74 new, affordable homes to the corridor. The Fort Wayne-based outlet notes that prices vary considerably across the city, pointing to Zillow data putting Fort Wayne's median home sale price at $262,083 as of September 2026.
Conflicting Price Tags, Shared Funding Sources
Not every outlet agrees on the bottom line. While 21Alive pegged the project at $24 million, The Journal Gazette reported a cost of about $25 million. Either way, the project draws on a shared pool of public support: the station reports nearly $1.1 million in READI funding earmarked for expanding affordable homeownership, plus $1 million from the city's Legacy Fund.
That Legacy Fund commitment did not come without debate. The Journal Gazette reported that Fort Wayne City Council voted to approve it, and separate reporting from WBOI put the final tally at 7-1 in favor back on September 8. Infrastructure financing details reported by WOWO describe a $1.089 million READI grant alongside an approximately $1.2 million loan, which would be repaid through future lot sales and tax increment financing.
Developer Sees Wealth-Building Opportunity
The project is being developed by LegacyOne, Inc., which is partnering with RANI to offer a homeownership preparedness program for prospective buyers, per WANE 15. LegacyOne President and CEO Linda Golden said Victory Gardens creates opportunities for families to establish roots, build wealth and take pride in southeast Fort Wayne's future.
Sales proceeds from the homes are intended to be reinvested in Fort Wayne's southeast side, and the project is described as aligning with the city's southeast Fort Wayne housing market needs assessment and southeast strategy update, according to the release cited by WANE 15. Officials project the homes could generate about $24.1 million in combined gross sales over three years and result in approximately $25 million in new residential mortgages.
Jobs, Tax Revenue, and a Rare Southside Milestone
Victory Gardens is expected to create 322 local construction jobs and generate $5.24 million in state and local tax revenue, according to Governor Mike Braun's office, as cited by 21Alive. Fort Wayne Councilwoman Rohli Booker characterized the development as only the second market-rate housing project the southeast has seen in more than 50 years, per the Journal Gazette's report.
Roosevelt Reserves is a 131-lot subdivision the City of Fort Wayne describes as the largest market-rate single-family housing development in southeast Fort Wayne in nearly 50 years. That project sits on 126 acres at Tillman and Hessen Cassel roads, with total investment expected to reach approximately $40 million across three phases planned for 49, 30 and 52 homes. Victory Gardens marks a notable shift for a corridor that has waited decades for this kind of investment.
