Roosevelt Elementary Re-Imagined as 23 Condos in Three Years

A group of about 50 people re-imagined Roosevelt Elementary School as a 23 unit-condominium complex that would exist in harmony with the established surrounding neighborhood and a planned city park during a community forum Monday evening.

Developers of Real Estate Services Group held a community forum to share its plans to renovate the school construction in 1923 and hear what residents would like to see as part of the development. The developer recently purchased the building, which the Ames Community School District closed in 2005. And the school district approved the final step of the sale at noon Monday, just hours before the community input meeting called “Roosevelt Re-Imagined.”

Dean Jensen, of Real Estate Services Group, said they were looking forward to creating new memories at the 90-year-old school and park.

“What we need as developers is a body of people, and I think we got them right here,” Jensen said, “People who are concerned, who put aside personal preferences and (are interested) in really vaulting our community forward.”

Real Estate Services Group imagined that empty nesters and young families would call the former school building home. And members from Citizens for Roosevelt Park said they hoped that the neighboring park would contain a unique play structure, open fields for soccer, a basketball pad, a shelter and covered stage. A child in the audience said through her mother that she would like a castle play structure with places to hide and soon.

The only problem is that the city hasn't allocated the funds necessary for a park of residents' dreams and a number of zoning changes need to be made before developers could begin to redevelop the site.

Roosevelt Park

The school district plans to hold a public hearing on the donation of 1.3 acres of land to the city on May 6. And the City has set aside $80,000 for the pocket park in a 2014-15 capital improvement plan. Members of the Citizens for Roosevelt Park group said they would be open to an even larger park and the city has already agreed to set up a temporary stage so that the neighborhood's summer concert series could continue. The Citizens for Roosevelt Park said they also planned to raise funds for the park.

Zoning

Ray Anderson, a planner for the City of Ames, said the project would have to go through a number of steps before city approval. The school site is currently zoned as government special and land surrounding it is zoned as urban core residential medium density. Developers want the urban core zoning as well, however that zoning designation doesn't allow construction of new multi-unit housing. The city would have to amend the text of the zoning ordinance to allow the redevelopment and then rezone the land. A change in the text of the ordinance could change the what's allowed in all city land designated as urban core residential medium density.

“Throughout this process … there will many opportunities for public input. Just so you know this isn't done without input by all of you and whoever is interested in this,” Anderson said.

Condominiums

Developers expect the condos to range in price from $120,000 to $170,000, which is the average sales price for a home in the Roosevelt neighborhood.

Ames School District residents rejected a plan to restore the Roosevelt building for school use in September of 2011. At that time, school officials expected renovations to cost about $10 million.

None of the plans including the number of condominiums is permanent Jensen said to the room.

A slide presentation showed construction could be complete in 18 to 36 months.

The full 90 minute forum will be the subject of a community radio program “Heart of Iowa” by Greta Anderson at noon and 7 p.m. Thursday on KHOI radio 89.1 FM.

Ames Newsletter/Ames Patch Facebook page/Twitter: @AmesPatch

On the Web:

• Citizens For Roosevelt Park
• Ames Smart Growth Alliance
• Real Estate Services Group