A controversial housing proposal for Rockford’s east side has the go-ahead from a reluctant city council. Aldermen approved the site plans for the development on South New Towne Drive, on a 7 to 5 vote.
The plan drew protests last summer from neighbors who feared building low-income housing in their neighborhood would increase crime. So the developer reduced the number of apartments in the proposal to 49, which limited city council’s input since the project no longer needed special zoning approval. Alderman Venita Hervey voted against the housing development for a number of reasons, including future residents being limited to just one parking space per home. She says,”It's going to make money because they were able to pack people into a small area in a tightly confined space, and that's going to give them money. But it's not going to give the city what it needs."
The nearly 12-million dollar development is a joint project between the Rockford Housing Authority and Wisconsin-based developer Gorman and Company. It’s supposed to relieve concentrations of low-income housing on the city’s west side and is expected to be completed next year.
