More housing (plus parking and shopping) is coming to Newark. What you need to know

Posted by Admin October 4, 2024 Shopping

Students looking to live near the University of Delaware’s campus will soon have another option in the heart of the college town.

Newark City Council approved plans for a five-story mixed-use building, which will have 52 apartments and retail on the ground floor. It’s a similar set-up to the rest of the city’s downtown, with parking and retail available on its ground floor.

It’ll be located on Haines Street, right off of Main Street, in the middle of downtown and less than a half-mile from UD’s main campus. The site is currently a parking lot behind a Starbucks and across from Little Goat Coffee Roasting Company.

The new building is going to be mostly for a student population who are looking to move off campus, with hopes it will help the high demand for off-campus housing. Newark City Manager Tom Coleman said the city’s vacancy rate is under 1%.

“We can address that vacancy rate and get it up,” Coleman said. “Most of what they build is going to be geared towards students because that’s where the demand is.”

The site will have 78 parking spots, leaving just one parking spot for every proposed unit. Coleman said the city adjusted its parking requirements because students living in these apartments are already close to campus, retail and entertainment options. Coleman said parking spots at these sites are effectively “car storage” as multiple cars don’t come and in and out throughout the day.

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“They walk to class, they walk the downtown, they walk to the door to dining halls,” Coleman said. “They’re not driving during morning rush hour. They’re not driving during evening rush hour, when you’re running into the real vehicle capacity issues on the roadways.”

Coleman said further downtown development alleviates traffic concerns by attracting students to live closer to campus, rather than living outside of the downtown or campus area and driving every day.

Additionally, he said, the building’s five-story height keeps it in line with the rest of the college town’s development.

“We want to do what we can to promote new growth, but we also don’t want to totally change the character in the town.”

Shane Brennan covers New Castle County with a focus on Newark and surrounding communities. Reach out with ideas, tips or feedback at slbrennan@delawareonline.com. Follow @shanebrennan36 on X, formerly Twitter.