With the expanded footprint of the new building, the area between nearby buildings has come into question, including the area bordering the Kingsbury apartment building (seen on the right in this image).

The developers of a proposed affordable housing building at 46th and Spruce presented more detailed plans for the four-story, 24-unit structure, which will replace the one-story building damaged by fire in 2011, to the Spruce Hill Community Association zoning committee on Wednesday night.

The Mission First Housing Group‘s building would include 24 one- and two-bedroom rental apartments aimed at people with a household income of $36,000 a year or less and is contingent on state funding. Mission First hopes to improve its chances for funding by going through the zoning process, which will require variances for building height, erecting a multi-family structure and not providing parking.

Their proposal got some pushback from neighbors concerned about the building’s height, which will be 10 feet higher than current restrictions, and its distance from nearby buildings. Tentative plans call for the new building to be pushed back from the Spruce Street sidewalk (the current building comes right up to the property line) to be more in line with other buildings on Spruce. That means the building has to go higher to accommodate the number of units needed for the project to be feasible.

The owner of the building in the rear of the project also wants a little more setback from his apartment building, the Kingsbury. Negotiations have been ongoing between the Kingsbury’s owner and Mission First to come up with a compromise that may push the building a little further toward Spruce Street.

Plans include indoor bike storage and trash receptacles and a compactor that would be stored inside. No parking is proposed, but Mission First representative Mark Deitcher said that few residents in similar housing complexes that the organization operates around the city own cars.

The building would be aimed at attracting low-income single residents, particularly veterans. Last night’s meeting was scheduled to get an update and no decisions were made. A full hearing on the project will be conducted after the plan is submitted to the city.

– Mike Lyons