Rebound Partners President Jay Scott presented updates on their proposal to purchase Garden Terrace to the EDA Tuesday morning. The apartment complex is currently owned by the city. Scott said other parties are interested in the property.

“We did have an opportunity to meet with Oak Hills,” he said. “There was some discussion about their interest in the Garden Terrace property. We met with them; Heather [Bregel] and Chris [Dalton] were part of that meeting as well. We since have followed up with some additional conversations, and we’re looking forward to a strategic alliance partnership with them.”

Scott said it was possible they could collaborate on a potential third building within the current Garden Terrace property. This would help Oak Hills to expand its services and occupancy.

Adding more places for people to live was a focal point when Rebound Partners first took an interest in Garden Terrace.

Rebound Partners submitted their $7.1 million offer for Garden Terrace at Tuesday’s EDA meeting.

“A lot of communities like New Ulm have housing needs,” Scott said. “[They’re] looking to grow jobs and employment. Typically our organization tries to come in and invest our resources, both capital and time, to come in and help meet those needs within the community.”

Rebound Partners looked at several areas in New Ulm for this need. With enough space to add a third apartment building on Garden Terrace land, Rebound Partners decided to focus their attention there first.

As for the offer itself, Scott said they had read appraisal reports on the property and how it compares to other similar entities in the area. Based on this, he said Rebound Partners wanted to buy the property for $7.1 million.

Scott said they would look to close on the property by the end of the year. Then work would begin to breathe new life into Garden Terrace.

“What we typically do is look for opportunities to reinvest capital into the building, to enhance it,” he said. “Update units, maybe add amenities, things like that, to make an attractive building for the next 20 or 30 years. A building of that age typically has a dire need for updates in the units themselves.”

Besides standard rent adjustments which would come regardless, Scott said there are no plans to raise rents after purchasing the building.

Scott announced during the meeting that they will be closing on purchasing the Lamplighter building Wednesday. He said they will begin renovations before the end of the year, and have Snowdrop Winery lined up to be a tenant with wine production and a cafe.

“We’re really excited about the redevelopment of that property and what that holds for the community,” Scott said. “That’s got a lot of our focus right now, and that’s going to be our initial entree in the market. It’s important we do this well and we bring that property back to its full potential.”

Through meetings with Rebound Partners, City Manager Chris Dalton said he believes they will be a good partner with the city and they gave a fair offer on Garden Terrace. Between now and the next EDA meeting, Dalton said talks will continue on the particulars.

“[We’re] still going through the negotiation process,” he said. “We’ll see where that all falls and if the EDA decides to accept or reject the offer from them.”

With a motion from Board member Andrea Boettger and a second from Char Kalk, the EDA unanimously agreed to hold a public hearing regarding the sale of Garden Terrace at their next meeting Tuesday, October 8 at 8 a.m.