Moorhead City Council

Developer Kevin Bartram has purchased the mostly empty John L. Whitnack Building on Center Avenue to expand his Armory Event Center next door. (Photo/Nancy Hanson.)

Nancy Edmonds Hanson

Developer Kevin Bartram on Monday received a Renaissance Zone property tax exemption totaling $180,000 over 15 years for his planned renovation of a long-empty downtown building he has dubbed the Armory Annex.

The structure, built in 1932 as the John L. Whitnack Building, is located at 824 Center Ave. across a parking lot from Bartram’s Armory Event Center and adjacent to the Swing Barrel Brewing Company. While much of the 10,500-sq.-ft. building has been unoccupied for at least a decade, architect Michael Burns maintains an office in a portion of the space; it will be incorporated into the remodeled facility.

Economic development consultant Derrick LaPoint told the council the Center Avenue LLC project is a good fit for the Renaissance Zone property tax exemption programs, which was first developed in 2011. The pluses include its potential to generate activity downtown, enhancing the goal of growing a walkable district. The project is so-called “infill,” remodeling and restoring an area already supplied with streets and infrastructure.

He noted that the project will update the deteriorated storefront on Center Avenue, along with providing an outdoor space for special events in what is now the parking lot between it and the neighboring event center. “These improvements will provide a unique gateway to downtown,” he observed.

The tax exemption unanimously approved by the city council will be spread over 15 years, starting at 100% and declining to 50% in its final five years. The estimate of $180,000 is based on the Bartram group’s investment, estimated at $2.36 million, or $235 per square foot.

Construction will begin this summer, with completion projected for March 2024.