New Huntingburg park revealed in 140-unit housing development

A housing development and a new northside park were revealed today during a special meeting with the City of Huntingburg and the developers of the new subdivision.

The new housing development appropriately named Hunters Crossing will feature at least 140 new 1,500 square foot homes with three bedrooms and one and half baths built on quarter to third-of-an-acre lots. The development will be located west of North Chestnut Street between 12th and 17th streets. It will abut the extension of 14th Street created by the Huntingburg Railroad Overpass.

The homes built by Owensboro based Jagoe Homes will average about $150,000; a price point identified in the recent housing study completed by Dubois Strong needed for the county to build its workforce. The homes are customizable and according to Scott Jagoe, owner of Jagoe Homes, depending on the customer’s needs and wants, pricing could vary.

“This project is extremely important because it meets the need for affordable, quality workforce housing that is prevalent throughout Dubois County,” said Mayor Spinner. “By adding to the housing inventory in Huntingburg, we will be able to attract the highly-skilled workforce that is desperately needed by all industries throughout the county.”

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The development of workforce housing was identified early in the Stellar Community application process, according to Huntingburg Mayor Denny Spinner. Finding a developer to team up with for the project was a bit more difficult for the city, but Jane Hendrickson of Boxer Girl, LLC met with city officials last spring and was immediately interested in working with the city to create the needed housing.

“My first visit to Huntingburg was prior to the Stellar designation, and even then, I knew it was a community where I wanted to be,” says Jane Hendrickson. “I am excited to bring quality, affordable workforce housing to this community, which already has so much to offer.”

The 5-acre northside park was also part of the planning from the beginning. “That was something that came up in our early community conversations,” Spinner said referring to the open meetings he held in 2012 when he first took office.

The park will be accessible from a new street in the development named Stellar Way. Access points are planned from outside the subdivision as well. Hendrickson also mentioned a fishing pond being created in the development.

The city has seen aggressive housing growth on the north side with the addition of several subdivisions over the past 15 years. A park to support the burgeoning area is a great fit.

According to Hendrickson, they identified the park as a major asset for their development. “The park is desired by many residents, and it will be near the Heritage Trail system,” Hendrickson said.

The housing development will be completed without any public funding. “This project translates into up to $20 million in private investment in Huntingburg,” Spinner explained.

The project will be completed in phases, with the first phase set to begin in spring of 2016. However, according to Hendrickson, depending on the weather, they would like to break ground by October of this year.

According to Mayor Spinner, this is just the first step in the development and the public will have ample opportunities to provide input as the process moves forward. The members of the development team will be available for questions Monday night at Huntingburg City Hall during the Huntingburg Planning Commission meeting scheduled for 7 p.m.