Open house held at Renaissance Pointe

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) – The City of Fort Wayne announced the first homes in the Renaissance Pointe neighborhood area ready to welcome new residents and to celebrate, Biggs TC Development, developer of the initiative, will host an open house on Saturday, Feb. 11 from 1 to 4 p.m. at 2301 John St.

Community residents or anyone curious about the new homes are invited to attend the open house to take a walk-through of the first of the project’s 66 units. The 3-and 4-bedroom homes with front porches and attached garages are in various states of construction throughout the neighborhood.

Last September, the city said Biggs TC began construction of 66 lease-to-own homes on vacant lots along John Street, Gay Street and Weisser Park. The initiative called for Biggs TC to start construction on two houses each week, until they reach their goal of 66, and to complete the development by August 2012.

Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry applauded developer Kevan Biggs for making a commitment to invest in the Renaissance Pointe neighborhood, noting that “building strong communities means strengthening neighborhoods. And, one of the best ways to strengthen a neighborhood is to make sure its residents have safe, decent and affordable housing.”

The city said Biggs envisions the $10 million project as something of a “homeownership incubator” for families who want to live in the Renaissance Pointe community, but whose credit condition or other circumstance makes home ownership difficult during this economic downturn. As a condition of leasing the new homes, residents agree to work with Biggs TC and its partners to construct or repair their credit status, in order to help them qualify for a traditional mortgage.

Saturday’s open house gives neighbors and those interested in moving to the neighborhood a chance to see what types of homes will be available for purchase.

The development includes brand new houses with an average value of between $125,000 and $140,000. The houses will be three- and four-bedroom homes with five different floor plans – including ranch, 1 ½-story and 2-story structures. The three- and four-bedroom units are designed to address the need for housing for larger households, according to the city’s ongoing assessment of fair housing choices.

“This particular phase of the development shows how responsive our development community is to the identified needs and desires of those with housing options,” said Heather Presley-Cowen, deputy director of the City’s Community Development division. “The City worked with the neighborhood to ensure the aesthetic standards were not compromised when it became clear the vision for the development needed to be fine-tuned to encompass a broader and more inclusive and welcoming opportunity for those seeking to live in what is fast becoming a neighborhood of choice.”

Renaissance Pointe was conceived as a vibrant, mixed-income neighborhood with traditional housing styles based on the American foursquare design and recognizable amenities such as front porches and fenced backyards.

The City invested several million dollars to prepare hundreds of vacant lots for future housing development. More than 25 grants were also awarded to current Renaissance Pointe homeowners, to help them make improvements to their properties.

City and other public funds were also used to strengthen infrastructure, such as creating the trail that runs through the neighborhood and making projects such as Renaissance YMCA possible. Such neighborhood investments were made as part of an ongoing city effort to help spur more economic development in the Renaissance Pointe neighborhood and throughout the city.

The Biggs project is the latest -- and largest -- example of development being responsive to the needs of those who want to live in Renaissance Pointe. Those interested in finding out more about the lease-to-own program may call (260) 724-6444.