Mount Pleasant weighs housing projects that could break decades-long drought

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Two proposed housing developments could bring hundreds of new apartments to the village of Mount Pleasant, ending a drought of new housing development as work gets underway nearby at Foxconn Technology Group’s massive factory site.

Plans presented to the village’s planning commission on Wednesday call for the construction of apartment complexes that could bring more than 500 units to Mount Pleasant, which hasn’t seen a market-rate housing project in 20 years.

As Mount Pleasant prepares for the flurry of development expected to follow Foxconn, local officials are confronting a shortage of housing. The village is home to only 44 housing units built since 2000 — half of which are senior apartments and half single-family homes. State and local officials held a housing summit in the village last week in the hope of piquing more developers’ interest.

Of the currently proposed projects, one would have the Brookfield-based developer Korndoerfer Homes build a complex with 440 apartments on 60 acres of land at 7222 Braun Road, east of Foxconn’s plant. Korndoerfer would put up a mix of units, including 24 duplexes and 21 four-family buildings, in addition to 22 larger buildings with between eight and 24 apartments each. Wolf Korndoerfer, of Korndoerfer Homes, said the project is still in its early stages. He said he doubts his company would break ground on the development before late 2019, saying he’s waiting for Foxconn to begin hiring in earnest.

“We’ve got a project, it’s just a matter of timing,” Korndoerfer said. “Foxconn is hiring people now but not at a fast-enough pace. But there’s going to be 20,000 new jobs. There’s not enough housing for those workers.”

Also, the Milwaukee developer Wangard Partners is planning a series of two-story townhouse buildings west of the village’s 90th Street. Wangard’s plans call for breaking ground on four townhomes next year, two of which will have 18 units and two which will have 21 units. The developer may also build nine more complexes. Wangard said it’s too early to say how many apartments the development could ultimately bring.

“These type of units will be at a level of detail that will be unlike what you have in the community today,” said Stewart Wangard, CEO of the firm. “It has been probably 20 years since there’s any type of major multi-family has been brought forward.”

Wangard’s development would bring market-rate units to Mount Pleasant. Renters would pay $1,600 a month or more for one-bedroom “luxury” units. The project comes in response not only to Foxconn’s factory plans, which promise to employ 13,000 in Wisconsin, but also projects proposed by Advocate Aurora Health, which is planning a $250 million hospital in the village, and Ascension, which is seeking to build a $42 million medical center there.

Not everyone at the meeting on Wednesday was happy about Wangard’s proposal. Some people said they are worried high-density apartment complexes could alter the suburban feel of their neighborhoods.

“I have some real concerns for the residents, because it looks like you’re trying to squeeze about 300 apartment in here,” said Robert Underhill, a member of the commission, who voted against the development plan. “When you get a lot of apartments condensed in one area, you can have some problems.”

Despite such objections, the Planning Commission gave a favorable vote on Wednesday to preliminary plans for Wangard’s proposed development. To move forward, though, the project must still secure various other approvals, at least one of which won’t be granted until landscaping plans are furnished. A proposal showing a good use of green space could make the project easier to stomach, said John Kis, a member of the plan commission.

“If you work with everybody here to come up with a plan that satisfies everybody in terms of green space then you’re going to find your segway into Mount Pleasant to be more pleasant,” Kis said. “I’ll just say three words: lots of landscaping.” Follow @natebeck9