Developers look to tear down YMCA, former Rochester bakery for apartments

ROCHESTER – More than 300 new apartment units could be coming as two developers bring forward plans for mixed-use apartment complexes.

The Rochester-based Prow Company has plans to transform a former bakery property in the northwest part of town into a complex near Civic Center Drive called Bakery Flats at 11^th Avenue NW. In downtown, the North Dakota-based firm Enclave wants to turn the site of the former YMCA building at 1st Avenue SW. into a seven-story, 219-unit building.

Both developers have yet to submit formal development applications according to Ryan Yetzer, the city's Community Development deputy director.

The city has a goal to add at least 750 apartment units annually as part of its comprehensive plan. A 2020 Olmsted County housing study forecast 18,000 more housing units would be needed by 2030 to keep up with expected population growth, with about 14,000 needed in Rochester alone.

Enclave entered into a purchase agreement in September for the YMCA, which closed the facility at the start of 2022. Patrick Brama of Enclave said the developer plans to close on the property and secure city permits by late spring. It hopes to start construction this summer by demolishing the YMCA building.

Brama said Enclave viewed the site as a good opportunity because it's adjacent to the Zumbro River, Soldiers Field Memorial Park and the University of Minnesota, Rochester, and well-positioned for residents attracted to future businesses and improvements in the downtown area.

"We believe in the vision that Rochester has laid out for their downtown," Brama said.

Enclave plans to finish the project in 2025. The complex would include 225 parking stalls – all enclosed – along with a fitness and yoga room, an indoor game room with a sport simulator, three rooftop-terrace common areas and a convenience store, among other amenities.

Enclave officials plan to host a neighborhood meeting Thursday to address any resident concerns. The developer has yet to set rents for each unit, but Brama said all units will be priced at market rate.

Bakery Flats isn't as far along. The Prow Co. has submitted documents on how a complex could fit in the 2-acre space, but hasn't finalized a design.

Architect Jose Rivas of CRW Architecture + Design Group says developers plan to add at least 100 apartment units, but the site could hold up to 20 townhomes, 190 apartment units and up to 2,500 square feet of commercial space, depending on project costs and funding sources.

"We are making an effort to have walk-out units be part of the design, so it's not just going to be an apartment building," he said.

The Bakery Flats site, formerly the home of the Rochester Bread Co., needs to be rezoned to make that happen. Rochester's Planning and Zoning Committee signed off Wednesday on the rezoning request, and the City Council is set to consider rezoning the property next month.

If the council agrees, architects would start work designing the complex and developers could start construction in late fall.

Some residents are urging Rochester's Heritage Preservation Committee to oppose the project, arguing the bakery site has been a city landmark ever since it was built in 1928. Other residents are concerned the apartment complex could complicate traffic along 11^th Avenue.

City officials say 11^th Avenue could handle additional traffic from the complex. Jose Rivas, an architect with CRW Architecture Design Group working on the project, said apartments likely would add less traffic than other potential developments.

"The project … would actually eliminate three of the current access points from the property onto 11^th Avenue, consolidating that access to one driveway," Rivas said.