Several trees were taken down from the old Drumlin Farm in Fitchburg to make way for 169 units of housing.
On May 20, Wajid Jenkins witnessed something he hoped he’d never have to see, even though it had been years in the making. The Alexander Company began clearing 5 acres of land in Fitchburg, knocking down several trees, including some oaks that were about 200 years old.
It was the final death knell for the Drumlin Farm, where Jenkins had lived from 2002 to 2009, when he was evicted. The land was a unique forest and farm located in the middle of an urban area. Its residents had big dreams for it, hoping to expand the farm, create affordable cooperative housing and a public park.
Jenkins is sad about the project for many reasons, but seeing the trees knocked down was salt on the wound. “It was awful,” says Jenkins, who now lives in a nearby apartment complex. “They could have planned a development that could have incorporated those heritage trees into the plan. You can see examples of it all around town.”
On the site, Alexander will construct the $35 million Artisan Village, 169 units of affordable housing. The first units, available next spring, will be for people making 50 to 70 percent of the county median income, which amounts to $35,000-$49,000 for a single person, according to Matt Meier, the company’s vice president of real estate development.
Rents will be about $760 to $935 for a one bedroom; $915-$1,210 for a two bedroom, he says. Meier says the company got a $1.2 million low-income tax credit from the state and federal government to help finance the project.
Meier says the company was able to save about 20 trees. While he regrets that the company couldn’t save more, he says the project will be worth the tradeoff.
“Affordable housing has been a long-standing goal in the neighborhood plan and throughout Dane County generally,” he says. “If you’re going to build it somewhere, you can either build it in the suburbs on farm fields, contributing to sprawl, or you can build it in an urban service area.”
“We’re thrilled to be able to make such a project a reality,” adds Meier, noting that employees of the nearby Novation campus — another part of the company’s development — will be able to walk to work.
Jenkins remains critical of the project. He notes that when the project was being proposed, many residents of the neighborhood asked for low-income housing with three and four bedrooms that would accommodate young families.
“They’ve been clear they’re targeting single-income families, young middle-class professionals,” he says. “One- and two-bedroom apartments is targeted at a completely different demographic than who lives there now. And I don’t think there’s anything else to call that but gentrification.”
