Mike Nowatzki
The Forum - 02/22/2007

The downtown Fargo High Rise, home to nearly 250 low-income elderly and disabled people, needs at least a $12 million overhaul, the city’s top housing official said Wednesday.

Fargo’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority is trying to decide whether to do needed repairs to the building – officially know as the Lashkowitz High Rise – or sell it and use the proceeds to build housing elsewhere for tenants, said Lynn Fundingsland, executive director of the housing authority.

Either route will require tenants to relocate, at least temporarily if not permanently, he said.

“Because of all the relocation costs and whatnot, it might be cheaper to sell it than fix it,” he said.

Fargo developer Jim Roers is among several private developers and real estate agents who have expressed interest, Fundingsland said.

Roers declined to comment Wednesday, but several officials involved in recent meetings with him said his company is proposing a riverfront development project on the block, which is bordered by Second Street, Fourth Street and Main Avenue.

“They are looking at a potential exciting additional project for the downtown area,” said Dave Anderson, president of the Downtown Community Partnership.

Mayor Dennis Walaker said Roers presented city officials with a concept that involved the entire block.

“He did come and talk to us, and it was just a concept of his that he was thinking of, a grand idea for that whole area down there,” Walaker said. “To get all these people all excited about relocation and all that, there’s a lot of work that’s gone to be done before that’s considered.”

City Engineer Mark Bittner said the city would be interested in working with Roers to incorporate flood control into the riverfront project, should it materialize. Fundingsland said the housing authority isn’t ready to make a commitment about the building’s future. Built in 1970, the high-rise is Fargo’s second-tallest building – 8 feet shorter than the 207-foot Radisson Tower.

The sewer and water pipes are rotting throughout the building, Fundingsland said.

“In 2005, we had over $20,000 in plumbing bills, so that was kind of a wake-up call,” he said.

The housing authority hired an architect to do a capital-needs assessment for all of its housing facilities. Completed in January, the report says nearly $7.5 million in improvements are needed at the high-rise, including new plumbing and light fixtures, appliances, air handling systems and windows. The high-rise has an assessed value of $7.6 million.

Inflation, developers’ fees and other “soft costs” could push the total for repairs and remodeling to $12 million or more, Fundingsland said.

The rotting sewer lines run the height of the 22-story building and would require 60 tenants to relocate for three to four months at a time during construction, he said.

To accommodate that process, the housing authority would reserve units as they become vacant during the year prior to construction to create enough vacancies for the relocated tenants, Fundingsland said. Last year, 67 of the building’s 248 units had tenant turnover, he said.

However, keeping those units vacant also would mean less revenue for the housing authority, he said.

Selling the high-rise would require approval from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fundingsland said, adding HUD won’t allow a sale without a solid plan to relocate tenants to other public housing.

“The people we have there are on fixed income, so they really don’t have a lot of options,” he said.

The housing authority can’t promise to sell to a certain developer, Fundingsland said, adding any sale would have to go through a request-for-proposals process.

Proceeds from a sale would probably be enough to replace the high-rise units with new housing projects, although finding locations could be a challenge, Fundingsland said.

One benefit of building new housing is that it would provide separate accommodations for tenants over age 62 and younger disabled tenants, whose lifestyles aren’t always compatible, he said.

Sandra Schimelpfenig, 48, who lives on the 21st floor, said she hopes the housing authority fixes the building and maintains it as low-income public housing.

“It’s on the bus route and it’s in a good area and my fishing spot’s right across the street there,” she said, pointing to the Red River. “I think a lot of people would miss living here.”

Rick Klienschmidt, 59, said he loves the view of the river from his apartment and likes the food service, the prompt maintenance personnel and the fact that he’s within walking distance of the bus station.

“The place has a lot of advantages and you meet a lot of different people here. I’ve made a lot of friends,” he said.

The housing authority doesn’t have the money to fix the high-rise, Fundingsland said. It would have to pair up with a private partner that could take advantage of a federal low-income housing tax credit program.

The high-rise would be under private ownership for 15 years, but the housing authority would manage the building.

The tax credit program will be used to finance the planned remodeling of New Horizons Manor in north Fargo next year, Fundingsland said. Estimated at $5 million to $6 million, the project is slated to start in September 2008.

The housing authority would like to tackle the high-rise project the following year, but it will take a lot of planning in advance, he said.

“Anything we do, the tenants come first,” he said.

About the Lashkowitz High Rise

- The 22-story building at 101 2nd St. S. was built in 1970.

- At 199 feet tall, it’s the second-tallest building in Fargo – 8 feet shorter than the Radisson Tower.

- It has 248 low-income apartment units; 244 units are currently occupied.

- Sixty-seven units had tenant turnover in 2006.

- To be eligible to live in the high-rise, tenants must earn no more than 30 percent of the area’s median income and be age 62 or older or disabled. About one-third of the tenants are age 62 or older.

Source: Lynn Fundingsland, Fargo Housing and Redevelopment Authority executive director; city of Fargo

Readers can reach Forum reporter Mike Nowatzki at (701) 241-5528