Updated Wilson Building creating ‘buzz,’ new memories

CLINTON, Iowa – Shirley Wheeler toured the renovated Wilson Lofts apartments in this city on Monday, March 20. If everything goes according to her plans, one of the apartments in the updated building will be her new home in a few weeks. “I could be moving in this April. I have my fingers crossed,” said […]

CLINTON, Iowa – Shirley Wheeler toured the renovated Wilson Lofts apartments in this city on Monday, March 20. If everything goes according to her plans, one of the apartments in the updated building will be her new home in a few weeks. “I could be moving in this April. I have my fingers crossed,” said the Clinton woman, who has submitted an application to move into one of the new apartments. “I just love it here. I love the freshness of the place.” Ms. Wheeler was one of several hundred people who attended tours and ceremonies for the renovated Wilson Building at 217 Fifth Ave. South in Clinton, now the Wilson Lofts. The six-story structure – the centerpiece of a $15.6 million renovation project that took almost 10 years to plan and complete – has been transformed  into retail business space on the first floor, and 33 apartments on the upper floors.

City and business officials predict renovation will not only give new life to the old Wilson Building, but will spur more life in the downtown district. “There is a lot of buzz here now, but there is going to be a lot more buzz in the future,” said Clinton Mayor Scott Maddasion, shortly before a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The mayor added that many people remember going to business offices and retail stories in the building over the decades. For instance, there was once a dentist office in the building, and a JC Penney store occupied much of the building for years. Now, families and business professionals will soon call the Wilson Lofts home and bring new life to the area, Mr. Maddasion said. “Today marks an era of new memories for this building. … This project will be a catalyst for downtown,” the mayor added. During Monday’s ceremonies for the building, other business and community leaders thanked the public for being patient during the long process to complete the renovation. Brian Hollenback, president and CEO of Economic Growth Corp. (GROWTH), the Rock Island-based non-profit organization behind the Wilson project, joked: “When I started this, I had hair and it was brown.”

He added, though, the project was completed because Clinton had a “unified voice” to support the Wilson renovation. “We’ve been extremely fortunate to have built a strong team of partners that believed and trusted in each other and believed and trusted GROWTH to get it done. The historic Wilson Building has been transformed into a catalyst for downtown, aligned within community plans, and has already demonstrated its ability to stimulate additional investment into downtown Clinton,” he said.  Some of the features of the building include:

• The former offices in the Wilson Building’s upper stories have been transformed into 33 new residential apartments ranging from two-story, townhome-type apartments, lofts from 975 to 1,275 square feet, and one- and two-bedroom rental units from 483 to 1,224 square feet. 26 units are designated at market rate, and seven units are designated as workforce housing for those earning 80% of the area median income. Rents range from $800 to $1,375 a month.
• The retail business portion of the building includes Clinton Culinary, a kitchen incubator providing spaces for start-up culinary businesses offering five incubator suites ranging from 194 to 317 square feet with rents ranging from $625 to $725 per month. Learn more here.
• Another business space is Makers on 5th, a retail/business incubator designed to help start-up retailers and entrepreneurs. Retail spaces range from 499 to 984 square feet and rents range from $715 to $1,175 per month. Learn more here. 
• The development attracted over 12 layers of complex financing to make up the capital stack and includes Federal New Market Tax Credits, State Historic Tax Credits, Federal Historic Tax Credits, Tax Increment Financing from the City of Clinton, Brownfield/Grayfield Tax Credits, Downtown Revitalization Grant by the Iowa Economic Development Authority through the City of Clinton, and private debt by IHMVCU, BankORION, and American Bank & Trust. Additional support includes Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District 2 funds from the Downtown Clinton Alliance and grant support by the Clinton County Development Association made possible through the Gateway Area Foundation/ Grow Clinton.

The Wilson Lofts building could be filling up in the near future. At one time, there were more than 100 people on the waitlist for apartments. Showings will start in the near future. Also, about five businesses have applied to rent space in the retail start-up business space in the building, said Beth Payne, senior vice president of GROWTH. She added that area food trucks might be some of the businesses setting up shop in the Clinton Culinary kitchen incubator section. That section is set up like a food court to attract customers and give them a look at several different food businesses.

Ms. Payne added that officials are also looking at forming a partnership with Clinton Community College’s culinary program and bringing in students or recent culinary graduates to the incubator. In addition to the retail space, three apartments were ready for tour on the building’s first, second and sixth floors. One was unit 104, which features two bedrooms, almost 1,200 square feet, a kitchen, washer and dryer and much more. The apartment’s rent is $1,300 a month. “Everybody loves it. They love the style. And that back bedroom (in this apartment) is probably the biggest bedroom you’re going to see all day,” said Alex Stockwell of GROWTH, who was showing the apartments. On a more practical matter, he added that many of the questions he faced during the tours centered on where tenants can park. Mr. Stockwell had information available during the tours showing three nearby city-owned parking lots available for people living and working in Wilson Lofts. Many visitors said they liked the apartments and the overall quality of the renovation project. “It’s nice. They did a good job with the place,” said Ed Wygnal, after he toured an apartment on the building’s second floor. Mr. Wygnal and others said they also appreciated the many pieces of history that remain in the building. For instance, an old brown mailbox – with the label “U.S. Mail Chute” – remains in the lobby near the new, modern elevators. Also, a “J.C. Penney” emblem is still part of the walkway in front of the building. There is also an old Wilson Building safe inside one of the retail office spaces on the first floor. It’s that mixture of new and old that caught the attention of many people during Monday’s tours. “It’s just a wonderful place,” Mrs. Wheeler said.