Brooklyn Center Jerry’s Foods Site to Become Affordable Housing
A vacant piece of land in Brooklyn Center is one step closer to becoming affordable housing. The block along Bass Lake Road and Xerxes Avenue was once home to a Jerry’s Foods grocery store, which closed in 1999.
Now, St. Paul-based developer, Real Estate Equities, plans to construct two buildings on the Jerry’s Foods site, with 270 affordable housing units — one would be for independent senior living; the other for so-called workforce housing.
On Oct. 14, the Brooklyn Center City Council approved a financing package that will allow the developer to borrow around $9 million at a low interest rate. That money will help fund the senior housing.
“Seeing a long vacant site in the city be redeveloped, particularly into housing, I think we’re really excited about the idea of having more activity on that corner, a lot more eyes on the street,” said Meg Beekman, Brooklyn Center’s community development director.
The city expects construction on the workforce housing building to begin in late December or early January. Construction on the senior building could begin several months later, once the developer secures another chunk of its financing.
