Northeast Cedar Rapids Redevelopment Project Getting Closer to Reality
The redevelopment of the site of a historic Cedar Rapids manufacturing plant has taken another step toward actual existence.
The plan for the redevelopment of the site of the former Iowa Manufacturing/Terex Cedarapids, Inc. plant could soon turn into reality. It was helped along by the Cedar Rapids City Council's approval of the terms of preliminary city incentives for the $32.6 million project. According to the Corridor Business Journal, the plan is for upwards of 200 new housing units plus "a mixed-use component."
The 3.2-acre site, at 916 16th St. NE in Cedar Rapids, was purchased by The Hub LLC, just over two years ago for $250,000. The Hub is headed by Joe Ahmann, who's the CEO of Ahmann Companies.
If the plan moves ahead as it appears now, more than 185 studio, one, two, and three-bedroom apartments would be contained in three separate buildings. Thirty-six of the apartments would be in an existing building that would be repurposed. Everything else on the site would be demolished with two new structures being built from 2022 through 2024.
Terex Cedarapids Site Redevelopment
Another Terex property building on 16th St. NE reopened as the Rinderknecht Athletic Center just over two years ago. The Mount Mercy University website said it's a "state-of-the-art wellness and athletic performance center." A photo and video of that building are below.
A development agreement plan is expected to be considered by the Cedar Rapids City Council before this summer ends.
The site of the proposed redevelopment was once home to a famous Cedar Rapids manufacturer. It's been nearly 12 years since Terex Cedarapids announced they were moving the Cedar Rapids facility's manufacturing to other factories, eliminating about 170 jobs at the time, according to the Gazette. It was an especially large blow to a community that had seen the original company, known as Iowa Manufacturing, founded in Cedar Rapids in 1923. The company manufactured paving equipment. The year before operations began in Cedar Rapids, the Brucemore Mansion website says the state of Iowa had 334 miles of paved roads. Obviously, it was an opportune time for the company to come online.
Howard Hall was one of the founders of Iowa Manufacturing. The Hall family were the last residents of Cedar Rapids' historic Brucemore Mansion, living there for more than four decades. They famously owned three lions (all named Leo) for approximately the first 14 years they lived in the home, beginning in 1937. Hall is pictured below with Leo 2.
Iowa Manufacturing was sold to Raytheon in the early 1970s, after Hall's death. The name was changed to Cedarapids, Inc. at that time. The Gazette reports that when Terex purchased Cedarapids, Inc. in 1999, the company had approximately 900 workers.