A new detention pond with a pedestrian trail is being proposed in northeastern Sioux Center, as part of ongoing plans to increase residential options and to add a new amenity.
Master planning for the area south of 20th St. NE and east of 13th Ave. NE identified this area for future residential growth but also recognized the future need for a detention pond to serve that area.
This week, the City Council approved creating a development agreement with a local developer, Vision Builders, to provide the land for and help build that pond, which would be similar to the new Bridgeview Pond, and the stage for additional housing.
“Housing is one of our initiatives from our strategic plan, and we know our inventory of available housing is low,” said Mayor Dale Vander Berg. “As a City we want to partner with developers to bring more housing opportunities to Sioux Center. This is a great example of putting that into action.”
The proposed pond would provide stormwater detention for about 145 acres. Engineers identified that about 22% of that stormwater would come from land owned by Vision Builders, and the City would ask them to pay that portion of pond construction. The pond will be able to be used both for detention and as a public amenity. Also as part of the agreement, Vision Builders would provide about 7.6 acres of land for future development to the City. The City, in turn, will trade about 4 acres of land along 11th Ave. NE to Vision Builders, who will participate in some of the development costs of that street plus provide an additional $100,000 toward future amenities and enhancements to the public area.
Also as part of this plan, Vision Builders is proposing the development of multi-family and owner-occupied single-family options in this area at a range of prices.
“The things we really like about this are that we are able to partner with a local developer – the City doesn’t want to be a developer – and that Vision will develop additional housing with various price points, which includes multi-family housing options as well,” Vander Berg said. “As a council, we will continue to keep partnerships with various developers as an integral part of our planning as we look to the future.”
