5-Story Mixed-Use Building Proposed For Near NewBo City Market [IMAGES]

The construction boom in the NewBo area, and throughout downtown Cedar Rapids, looks like it will continue with a huge new proposed building, along with today's groundbreaking of a previously announced project.

A local investment group has announced plans for a $36 million building just a couple of blocks away from NewBo City Market. The Loftus building would be in the 900 block of 3rd St. S.E., where Loftus Lumber was once located. It would be built in the area shown in the image below.

At Tuesday's Cedar Rapids City Council meeting, the city's Economic Development Analyst, Caleb Mason, presented a project term sheet for the proposed building. Dave Drown, President of GLD Commercial, and a group of local investors are behind the project. The group is called DOMOV, LLC. Mason said during the meeting that DOMOV is Czech for 'home.'

Plans call for a 5-story mixed-use building that would have 11,000 square feet for businesses on the ground floor. The building would offer 186 market-rate apartments, varying in size from studio to three-bedroom, a rooftop patio, and other tenant amenities, as well as some covered parking.

On Tuesday, the Cedar Rapids City Council gave approval to the term sheet that calls for full reimbursement of the increased taxes up to $6.4 million or 20 years.

Mason says the developers will also be applying for Workforce Housing Tax Credits and Brownfield/Grayfield Redevelopment Tax Credits with a development agreement expected to be in front of the city council this September. He said construction would begin in April of 2023 with the project taking about 16 to 18 months to complete. Renderings of the proposed building, as well as today's groundbreaking in the same quadrant of Cedar Rapids, are below.

Our news partner KCRG reports that groundbreaking will be happening this afternoon at 3 p.m. for the NewBo Lofts.  We first told you about that 2-building project (photo gallery below), that will go up in the 400 block of 16th Ave. SE, in December of 2021.

Work also continues in the downtown area on the 1st and 1st project along 1st Street and 1st Ave. SW. That project started in April. Construction also continues on Annex on the Square, which broke ground in mid-December of 2021. Photo galleries on both of those projects are below.