Hastings Moving Forward with Redevelopment of Former Middle School Building

HASTINGS Neb. — The former Hastings Middle School building, which has been vacant since 2008, is one step closer to being an asset to the community once again. The Hastings City Council approved a plan to develop the building into a 68 unit apartment complex. The total cost to transform the building is estimated to be around $15 million. Nearly $2 million of that will come from tax increment financing. The Council discussed an option to demolish the building, which would cost an estimated  $1.5 million, but would keep them at square one when it comes to increasing tax revenue for the location. Hastings City Planner Ember Batelaan says the plot currently generates between $8,000-10,000 per year in tax revenue. Once the apartment complex is operational, that figure is expected to exceed $200,000.

Batelaan adds that a project like this will go a long way, “There was still a need for 900 more housing units. So while we have been building a lot of projects with Elm 26, with the Cedar Park development, there’s still a need at least 90 units a year.”

Hastings Mayor Jay Becky admitted a general skepticism when it comes to using TIF, but this is the kind of project that’s too good to pass up, “This is a win-win. It’s a local development group that’s taking this on. It’s a historic building that has value in our city. There’s nothing else that can be done with this building. This is the time to take advantage of this. This is the time to use the funding tools that we have at our disposal to do this project.”

The Council approved the resolution 7-1. Now the developers can begin work mapping out work on the engineering and architecture side while preparing to remove asbestos from the building, which they have secured a grant from the EPA for. Once that’s completed, the construction is expected to take 18-months and will be done primarily with local contractors.