Developer’s Vision Brings Beauty and Convenience to River Corridor
“In the past the real estate buzz word was ‘Location, Location, Location,’ as people left the cities to move to the suburbs. Now a buzzword is ‘Convenience’, according to Bob Stephens, President of Mishawaka based Prime Development and Michiana native.
“Everyone has hectic lifestyles and spending time commuting takes its toll. We saw it in Chicago 15-20 years ago that people commuted to work, home, shopping, and every other activity. I worked for Prime Real Estate Development then in Chicago and we recognized this frustration of spending time behind the wheel, and not having connectivity with families or community. We took blighted areas like Wicker Park and revitalized them into neighborhoods once again that offered a better quality of life. Places where people wanted to and could move back into the city. Places like that made it easier to go to work, walk to a coffee shop, take an evening stroll through parks, and be a part of a neighborhood.”
Now Stephens is bringing his experience and vision of the ultimate city lifestyle to every doorstep he develops along the St. Joseph River corridor in Mishawaka.
“What happened in Chicago is happening here. People had left downtown areas for subdivisions. I’ve seen downtown Mishawaka go from a thriving hive of activity to an area where few chose to live. I didn’t want to just build subdivisions in fields. I want to make mixed-use developments—to get the ‘neighborhood’ back into the downtown,” Stephens said.
Stephens has planned and developed other quality Michiana residential communities such as Barrington Estates, Highland Village and Rosewood to name a few. Barrington Estates, his first major project, is a high-end, private, gated community on the river with two lakes and a trout stream. “Before it was an absolute dump and no one would touch it. However, you had city water and sewer available and this beautiful river, lake and creek to take advantage of—so it proved to be incredibly successful,” stated Stephens.
One of Stephens’ major projects is IronWorks of Mishawaka. IronWorks is an emerging mixed-use urban development that will transform the 30-acre riverfront area once occupied by the former Uniroyal manufacturing plant. The City of Mishawaka purchased the site in 1998, cleaned it up, and began the search for how to best develop the area. In 2006, Mayor Jeff Rea and the City of Mishawaka selected Stephens as the developer because of his master plan, experience, and vision and, perhaps more so, for his hometown pride. Stephens then selected the noted Chicago-based Commercial/Retail Marketing professional, John Melaniphy, as a Consultant to help evaluate potential opportunities within his IronWorks Development.
“Our projects have been successful because of the people who have shared, added to and invested themselves in the vision of what we have here that is not found anywhere else — that is the St. Joseph River. IronWorks of Mishawaka is quickly moving forward because public chairs in the city, like Mayor Jeff Rea, see the opportunities that our area has to offer and want to take advantage now.” Stephens explained. “We have a diverse economy here; we have the opportunity for people to get a quality education, whether it’s public or parochial, high school or college. It really covers all the points of interest, and people will take a look at this area and say, ‘it’s got a low crime rate, they’ve got a wonderful nest of services, good public transportation, and it’s close to Chicago and Indianapolis.”
Iron Works includes a three-mile river walk loop connecting multiple parks along the way, and features two pedestrian bridges that will cross the river. “It’s not only downtown, it’s the connectivity of the water, and the fact that Mayor Jeff Rea plans to extend this wonderful river walk amenity all the way to the east if enough land can be acquired, ” Stephens said. “Can you imagine how wonderful that would be for people on the east side of Mishawaka to be able to go down the new sidewalk system they have created along Jefferson, to be able to ride their bikes all the way downtown to have ice cream or watch a movie, and never have to get in a car? That is the vision that Mayor Rea, John Melaniphy and I share.”
“They had the foresight and the vision to create a Development focused on consistency, continuity and theme,” commented Donna Durish, General Manager of Prime Development and Vice President of the Iron Works project. “The best way to describe IronWorks is to call it a city within the city of Mishawaka. Where else could you be, within all the greater St. Joseph County area, with proximity so close to the riverfront, several beautiful park sites and the river walk? There is nothing like this location anywhere else.”
“Doing this puts us on the map,” Durish says. “This makes us unique in this arena of urban developments for a City the size of Mishawaka.” Indeed it is unique—the IronWorks project was selected to be featured on the cable TV series Sustainable Planet. While not LEED certified, as outlined by the U.S. Green Building Council, IronWorks strives to follow many of the guidelines for green development.
One of the goals for the project is to be innovative while maintaining the traditional values and history of small town life. Thus, this urban development takes its name from one of the three small industrial towns that eventually made up the one city of Mishawaka — St. Joseph of Iron Works.
Iron Works will be one of the largest developments in the area and promises to offer many unique features while revitalizing downtown Mishawaka. The vision is to combine the best elements of business, residence and entertainment and to connect them with beautiful landscaping and smart architectural design to provide a distinctive lifestyle that fulfills one’s daily needs and desires. A key attraction of Iron Works is its potential for a healthier lifestyle. With its connectivity of sidewalks leading to the many parks and along the River, it links residents to the rest of the city, encouraging walking instead of the usual car ride.
The Townes at Kamm Island Park is the first residential property within IronWorks. Besides being located on a picturesque waterfront site, the designs of the townhomes can be completely customized by the buyers which add to their uniqueness. Every building, and every townhome within the building, is different. Buyers can choose from town houses ranging in size, from 2,100 to 2,800 square feet, with such features as first floor master suites, large decks, 2nd floor balconies, bonus rooms and attached 2-car garages.
“It’s like building five custom homes in one building,” Durish explains. “We want the buyers to select the features which best suits their lifestyle. We understand that this is a major commitment, and we want them extremely satisfied with the end product.
Another set of townhouses are set for development, along with condos and apartments over retail spaces, four to six-story elevator condominium buildings and three-story terrace homes with roof top gardens are all in the works for future residential pieces.
“It all depends on what the market demands. We will always try to build what buyers want and when they want it,” according to Durish.
Another group who shares Stephen’s vision is Arkos Design, Inc. of Niles, MI. Stephens credits Arkos with helping him capture the European concept of healthy lifestyles and boutique-style retail and development. “We’ve combined what I saw when I traveled Europe, and San Francisco, Chicago, and D.C., with their experiences and creativity. Now this vision is becoming reality on the Riverfront in Mishawaka. I am so proud of my team.”
For Stephens it has been this dream that has kept him building for the past 15 years, getting closer and closer to putting Mishawaka on the map. But the vision alone won’t get the job done; he’s needed other people to share his vision in order to bring it to life—the people who will live, work, shop and play here.
“The key ingredient to success is the vision itself, showing the master plan and demonstrating to people that this development is beneficial. We’re creating a whole new lifestyle back to the way it used to be, the way our parents and grandparents lived, but with today’s conveniences. We’re bringing back the community, away from the commuter subdivision. This is unique and convenient. It’s really special.”
Iron Works of Mishawaka still has another seven to ten years until it is completed, but Stephens, along with his team and the partnership with the City of Mishawaka, will continue designing more and more innovative ideas into the IronWorks project until it is done.
“This development corridor is my office, my canvas, my passion. It’s my legacy. But you know, I’m only successful to the extent that people understand and share the vision and are able to take the risk with me. I’ve been very fortunate and blessed to have had people do just that,” Stephens said. “I didn’t compromise my vision because the people who lived in my developments didn’t either. They stayed here, they paid taxes and put their kids through school here, and this has been our collaboration.