The southeast corner of North Sixth Street and Tower Avenue is getting a new addition.
Construction is expected to begin next month on the building that will house Commercial Flooring Installations and provide additional space for other businesses to lease.
“We’re basically a union shop,” said Tony Quilty, owner of Commercial Flooring and vice president of Starboard Properties, which is constructing the building. It will feature two storefronts and offices on the second floor facing Tower Avenue with a 60-by-80-foot warehouse running parallel to North Sixth Street.
The proposal is for a 6,000-square-foot building, as well as some parking and landscaping at the site north of the former Shooter’s Saloon, said Jason Serck, economic development, port and planning director. He said the Redevelopment Authority would sell the property to Starboard Properties for the appraised value of $52,500.
The company is planning to invest about $500,000 into the project, and the city would provide a $25,000 grant — the same amount available through the city’s Small Business Grant program — at the end of the project to help pay for some of the site improvements, Serck said.
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“We think this is a good site for this,” Serck said.
The Redevelopment Authority approved the sale of the land and a development agreement with Starboard Properties during a teleconference meeting March 26.
Construction on the project is expected to get underway May 5 with expected completion around May 1, 2021.
With the current health crisis, Serck said the Redevelopment Authority would remain flexible on the timeline and make adjustments if necessary.
Jill Quilty, president of Starboard Properties, said in addition to the building, the company plans to install a wooden fence around most of the property to shield some of the parking from view with chain link fencing adjacent to the alley.
The plan for construction includes setting the building back from the pedestrian sidewalk and running a walkway to the storefronts to preserve landscaping planted after the reconstruction of Tower Avenue in 2013, she said.
The steel construction building will have a timber storefront and deck on the second level, and the color scheme is charcoal gray and bronze, Tony Quilty said.
“This sounds like a good project,” said Doug Finn, a member of the Redevelopment Authority board. “I hope it goes well for you.”
