An 82-unit apartment complex is moving forward on Van Dyke Avenue in Sterling Heights after the City Council approved the Chaldean Community Foundation's second phase of apartments, following a tied vote that had stalled the project weeks earlier. The four-story building, planned for 43934 Van Dyke Ave. with some ground-floor retail, carries an estimated price tag of $30 million.
According to Crain's Detroit, the nonprofit is moving forward with a second apartment development in Sterling Heights. The Sterling Heights City Council had initially deadlocked 3-3 on the proposal at a July 16 meeting, a result that left the project's fate in limbo, as C&G Newspapers reported at the time.
The council revisited the plan on Aug. 7 and approved it by a 5-2 margin, according to the same outlet's follow-up report. The approved building is expected to include 82 one- or two-bedroom units alongside the retail space, with CCF President Martin Manna estimating the overall cost at $30 million and noting that a loan from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority would help finance construction.
How the Land Deal Came Together
As part of the approval, the city planned to sell roughly two acres of land to the developer for around $30,000 per acre, the report states. That parcel is part of a larger site the city purchased for about $640,000 using American Rescue Plan Act funds, covering more than 10 acres in total, per the same account.
A related transaction involved a 10.34-acre site the city had acquired; an agreement called for about two acres to be sold to the developer for roughly $60,000, with about eight acres eventually returned to the city, according to a separate C&G Newspapers report on resident pushback over the site. That earlier coverage described plans to redevelop about two acres of the site with 80, possibly 82, apartments.
A Centuries-Old Tree in the Footprint
That same report described a chinquapin oak estimated to be nearly 270 years old standing on the portion of the site where the apartments would be built, a detail that drew objections from nearby residents at the time.
The Van Dyke Avenue project is not the only CCF apartment effort underway in Sterling Heights. A separate development is expected to bring 135 affordable apartments and street-level retail to the city's North Van Dyke Riverland District, according to Crain's Detroit Business. Another nearby property, Tigris Tower, offers one- and two-bedroom apartments in the area.
Why Sterling Heights Needs More Rentals
The push for more housing options comes against a backdrop of rising rental demand across the region. Sterling Heights was among the communities with notable rental-unit growth, according to research published by the Urban Institute. The same analysis projected Southeast Michigan's renter households would grow from roughly 550,000 in 2010 to just under 700,000 by 2040.
