Beaver Dam City Council unanimously approved a developer deal Monday with JCW Development to build a mix of condos, single-family homes and apartments in a once devastated area. The 8-acre site on the shore of Beaver Dam Lake will be developed in phases.

The city purchased the vacant LaCrosse Street Hospital and demolished it in 2019, and an apartment building adjacent to 600 W. Third St. was destroyed in a fire in 2018. It was funded by a TIF district as an incentive for developers, with the cost to be repaid from higher tax revenue from the development of the property.

The city then sold those properties to the developer for $1.

Trent Campbell of the Beaver Dam Area Development Corporation provided council with details of the new deal at Monday’s meeting, saying he had his “full approval”.

The total estimated developer cost exceeds $66.1 million with an estimated value creation of $45.4 million. The maximum potential reimbursement costs for developers will not exceed $17.5 million, although Campbell estimates they will likely be closer to $11-12 million.

Campbell said the city currently has about $2 million in principal debt sunk into the project. Costs over the term of the agreement, including the purchase and demolition of the hospital, clean-up, interest, borrowings and administration, are estimated at $2.98 million. Projections see the city recover $3.5 million before the TIF closes.

Ben Westra of WDS Construction and JCW Development presented the site plans for the development, dubbed The Monarch, to the council. Changes were made to the company’s initial plans to provide a greater diversity of accommodations.

Six mansion-style condominiums with four units per building are now planned, as well as 10 single-family homes. Two apartment buildings of approximately 70 units each will be nestled at the northeast and southeast corners of the site with underground parking. Preserving an open green space with a water feature that doubles as a rainwater retention system will give a decorative look to the entire property.

The development will be private – in the sense that the streets and park amenities will not be maintained by the city – but it will not be closed to the public.