Upper Floor grants to add to downtown options

BELOIT — A baker’s dozen of apartment units should hit the market this fall because of a Downtown Beloit Upper Floor Housing Grant program.

In the spring, the City of Beloit awarded $363,010 in grant funds generated from Tax-Increment Financing districts to six property owners who plan to remodel the upper floors of their buildings to increase the local housing supply.

The projects will result in 13 new units in a market badly in need of additional housing options. The units will be on State and Pleasant streets and East and West Grand Avenue.

Betsy Schmiechen, owner of The Villager Gallery and Frameworks, 429 E. Grand Ave., said the money she received will help her finish a project she started in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We refinished part of the upstairs for retail use years ago, then we decided to put in a bathroom,” Schmeichen said. “We’ve been working on it a little bit ever since. This just helped us do things a little bit faster.”

Schmeichen said they’ve put in a new staircase, refinished the floors, upgraded the electrical, added cabinetry and should have countertops finished by the end of the month.

“It’s a good idea, but it’s not unique to Beloit,” Schmeichen said. “It’s happening all over.”

Indeed, if you search Upper Floor grants, you’ll find similar programs by the Wisconsin Economic Development Department, the Kansas Department of Commerce, and the East Central Iowa Council of Governments.

Still, it’s another creative effort by the city to increase housing opportunities.

In May, the city sold 23 lots acquired through the tax foreclosure process to an Illinois homebuilder who committed to building homes aimed at a middle-income price range.

In June, the city council approved giving $3 million each to two developers who want to build affordable housing projects on Riverside Drive and in the Gateway business district. Those projects, when completed, will add 149 apartment units to the city.

A housing demand study in 2022 showed that 250 new units per year will be need in Beloit to keep up with demand, but nowhere near that many units are currently being built.