Ground broken on $50M workforce housing development in Elkhart
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Ground was broken this week on a housing project at Elkhart’s eastern gateway that is slated to bring over 250 new apartment units to the area and marking a major step forward in the city’s push to expand workforce housing.
The Flats at Pine Creek, a $50 million development by South Bend-based Holladay Properties, will rise on a 20-acre site near the intersection of U.S. 20 and County Road 17. It marks the latest phase in the long-planned Pine Creek at 17 development, a mixed-use vision that includes residential, commercial, and office space on a 100-acre site.
“This is a long time coming. We’ve had our sights set on this piece of property since May of 2022,” said James Randolph, development manager for Holladay Properties. “It wouldn’t have happened without a lot of the people that I’m looking at right now.”
The groundbreaking follows years of planning and public-private coordination. Randolph credited local partners including developers Ed Welter and Dan Brekke, design and engineering teams and city officials for helping the project navigate a challenging financing environment.
The development is being funded in part by $6.5 million in tax increment financing from the city, which will redirect a portion of new tax revenue generated by the project back into it. Mike Huber, Elkhart’s director of development, said the city’s support is part of a broader strategy to increase residential offerings near major employment centers.
“We’re standing in the middle of some of our largest employment areas. About 30,000 people a day drive into Elkhart for work,” Huber said. “If we can capture even 5% of that, we’ll need to build 8,000 to 9,000 new housing units. Projects like this help us get started on that goal.”
Randolph said the first 36-unit building and clubhouse are expected to open by April 2026, with the remaining buildings delivered in phases every six weeks. The project will offer mostly market-rate rents with about 1 in 10 units reserved for residents earning below 80% of the area median income. Rent is expected to be in the $900–$1,600 range.
Developer Ed Welter, who has invested in the Pine Creek site for more than a decade alongside partner Dan Brekke, reflected on the project’s origins.
“We bought this 100-acre parcel 12 years ago,” Welter said. “We carved out this 20-acre parcel in hopes it would someday become what it’s becoming today—apartments.”
Welter emphasized the up-front investment made in infrastructure, including roads and utilities before any parcels were sold—work he and Brekke handed over to the city. He also stressed the importance of public-private partnerships in getting the project off the ground, particularly given the area’s modest rental rates, which have discouraged other investors.
“We were crazy enough to spend what we spent here,” Welter said. “So we figured, why don’t we spend just a little bit more?”
The current phase will use roughly 13 of the acres set aside for the Flats, with Welter indicating a second phase of similar scale could follow on the remaining land.
The Flats at Pine Creek will consist of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments and feature amenities such as a fitness center, outdoor pool, dog park, gaming area, and grilling stations. The site’s proximity to major employment centers is a key advantage, according to developers, who say the location will appeal to residents seeking high-quality housing options within commuting distance of local jobs.
“It’s very pleasing to be here and be mayor at this time,” Elkhart Mayor Rod Roberson said. “But even more so for us to be able to provide 250-something-odd opportunities for living in this space.”