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Developer: Fulton Square project will go forward

Photo

Photo by Dan Lassiter

The Fulton Square project in Edgerton.

Photo

Photo by Dan Lassiter

The Fulton Square project in Edgerton.

EDGERTON — For the past couple of weeks, the construction site near the corner of Fulton and Main streets has sat untouched, fueling rumors the mixed-use project might be going under.

Monday, the developer spoke to the Edgerton City Council to assure residents that isn’t the case.

The Fulton Square project will move forward after a short delay, developer Tom Keller told The Janesville Gazette.

Construction began in October on a $6.1 million retail and housing development at the site of a former downtown parking lot. City officials hoped the project, Fulton Square, would revitalize downtown by balancing the two sides of Fulton Street and providing modern retail space.

Keller Development officials said weather, material delays and a late appraisal have delayed the project this month, said Ramona Flanigan, city administrator.

The developers had been waiting on a recently completed appraisal to finalize financing of the project. They expect to close on bank financing in about a week, Flanigan said.

The developers already have invested $2 million into the project and do not intend to quit, Flanigan said.

“They were here (Monday) night to squelch all the rumors,” she said.

The city voted last year to contribute up to $1.2 million in tax incremental financing money to the project as part of the developer’s agreement. It expects the project to add $5.3 million in tax base to the city, Flanigan said at the time.

Keller declined to go into detail about what caused this month’s delay, saying only that weather was part of the problem, but not all of it. The project should start moving again in about a week and be completed in early September, he said.

The developer has accepted an offer to buy retail space and received an offer for one of the project’s 26 condominiums, Keller said.

“There’s been some activity,” he said.