The authority overseeing redevelopment of the former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant in Arden Hills on Tuesday wrapped up interviews with a narrowed list of master developer finalists.
A list of four original bidders was narrowed earlier this month to three after going through a separate interview process with a 12-member solicitation review committee.
The three finalists who then pitched proposals to the TCAAP Joint Development Board were Alatus, Opus Corp. and Pulte Homes, and Ryan Cos. US Inc. and Lennar Corp. The five-member board is expected to decide on a final master developer on May 2.
A Kraus-Anderson and Elion Partners partnership was dropped from the list of contenders, despite meeting the minimum criteria for the 27-page solicitation request.
I think [the groups] were responsive and they responded in different ways, obviously, David Sand, who chairs the board, said at Tuesday’s meeting. I felt good about the fact that [we heard from] this quality of development companies and construction companies and design companies.
The solicitation review committee recommended the three groups who best demonstrated their qualifications, organizational and financial capacity and their ability to meet the shared goals of the city and county, according to the board¹s meeting documents.
The joint development board is made up of two Arden Hills City Council members, two Ramsey County commissioners, and a non-elected appointee who chairs the board.
Alatus, Kraus-Anderson and Ryan Cos. are based in Minneapolis and Opus in Minnetonka. Elion Partners is based in Aventura, Florida; Pulte is headquartered in Atlanta and Lennar in Charlotte, North Carolina.
During the past two weeks, the three finalists gave hourlong presentations to the authority. Each outlined short- and long-term site plans; how the group’s residential, commercial and office density goals compared to the adopted master plan; their designs for the planned town center and green space, and financing options for the project.
Of the 633 total acres around the site, 427 acres are part of the current master plan. About 320 acres are set for redevelopment. The site is in the northeast quadrant of Interstate 35W and Highway 96.
According to the master plan, city and county officials are seeking a mix of housing types to accommodate 1,431 new units and about 4,000 jobs through retail and office space.
