T-R PHOTO BY SUSANNA MEYER This new road off of South Sixth Street was recently completed, and it will soon lead to the Creekside Estates housing development, which will consist of townhomes and duplexes, as well as single family detached residences.

The street that will eventually lead to the Creekside Estates housing development was recently completed and, once approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission and the city council, the construction of owner-occupied townhomes and a mixture of duplexes and single-family homes is slated to begin on the South Sixth Street property in the near future.

The Creekside Estates development project has come together through a partnership between the Prime Development Group, which owns the property near Wayward Social where the housing development will be, and the city of Marshalltown.

The city took on the cost of the recently completed public street, as well as utilities access, the installation of a sewer line to serve the neighborhood and a trail connection from the freedom rock to the skate park. Prime Development Group will take on any additional costs.

The street work was completed by Con-struct, and City Administrator Jessica Kinser estimated that it took less than six months to finish. With that portion of the project out of the way, the next steps have begun to start work on the homes that will be built on the property.

Kinser said the plat hasn’t been finalized yet, but they are hoping that the plan will be approved at the Oct. 13 Planning and Zoning Commission meeting. It could then be presented to the city council for approval on Oct. 24.

Upon approval, construction on the property can begin. As of now, nine of the 25 lots are slated for townhomes, and the remaining 16 lots will either be duplexes or single-family homes. Kinser said one of the city’s goals is to increase housing availability, so partnering with Prime Development Group was a good way to achieve that.

“If we’re not growing, we’ve got problems, and I think if there’s not places for people to live, we can’t grow. So it’s just a, it’s a problem that feeds itself,” Kinser said. “The costs of development in Marshalltown tend to be higher than other areas, and so we are doing what we can to incentivize development of new lots for housing where we can.”

Kinser said typically, contractors have to come in from out of town to work on development projects which can end up costing more, so the city tries to partner with developers where they can in order to make development in Marshalltown “more appetizing.”

The development is a part of the up-and-coming Linn Creek District, which has many amenities including the YMCA and the Marshalltown Arts and Civics Center, among others, and it will soon be home to the water plaza too.

Mike Hayworth with Prime Development Group, who is one of the owners of Creekside Estates, said this was a definite draw when considering the property.

“We feel like Linn Creek District is really an up-and-coming, exciting area, with a lot of activities,” Hayworth said.

In addition to the many activities available in close proximity to what will be Creekside Estates, including Wayward Social, the Crosby Park apartment complex south of the property was also a plus according to Hayworth, and it added to the charm of the area. Being able to partner with the city on the project also made Marshalltown in general more appealing.

“We were lucky enough to partner up with the city on the development of this land. It’s been a really easy going partnership. We’ve enjoyed working with the city on this. They are excited about development, they want development to happen, and so we’re very excited about continuing to work in Marshalltown simply because the city is accommodating and willing to work with you,” Hayworth said. “You don’t always see that in other communities.”

City Planner Hector Hernandez said the new housing development will complement the Linn Creek District nicely, and he’s looking forward to seeing how it all fits together. He said there seems to be a real demand for housing in Marshalltown, so the Creekside Estates should meet those needs nicely.

“I’m just hoping I guess that new housing development continues, like the Creekside Estates and also just more new homes,” Hernandez said. “It’s just really exciting to see Marshalltown with all these building permits, and just seeing progress that has been made. I’ve been a longtime resident and I’ve been seeing many new constructions of homes. It’s just an exciting time to see all this new development here in town.”

Hayworth said he was looking forward to seeing the end product and bringing a different type of housing to the Marshalltown community. They are hoping to get started on construction this fall, but if that doesn’t happen, they plan to hit the ground running in the spring of 2023.

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Contact Susanna Meyer at 641-753-6611 or smeyer@timesrepublican.com.