uptown Tag

These days everyone in Valpo seems to be talking about the Celebration Event at Valparaiso's "rebranded" downtown apartments.  And why not? The entire community is invited to attend the Wednesday, August 16th Event, which will include FREE food, live music, and a celebration of Valpo's unique culture.

For anyone that loves Valpo, this will be the event of the year!

And while Free Party is something to get excited about, it's Valpo's business and restaurant owners that are calling the event a Celebration! After several years of struggling to find young professionals to work at their businesses and restaurants, the rebrand celebration is the light at the end of the tunnel. Now that Valpo's downtown has affordable housing for the next generation, Valpo's workforce is on the move.

The Next Generation Needs a Range of Affordable Housing Options!

We think you'll agree, a great city needs diversity in its workforce. To be called a great city, you need culture, remarkable restaurants, award-winning schools, and small shops. The list is endless. But ask any restaurant owner, or anyone else that is responsible for hiring young professionals, Valparaiso is facing a staffing crisis. Without quality people to fill these positions, Valpo is destined to become yet another bedroom community!

But this problem isn't due to laziness, or because the next generation doesn't want to live in Valpo. Just walk around Valparaiso on a gorgeous afternoon and you see young professionals everywhere. The issue is Valparaiso's lack of affordable housing, especially in Valpo's downtown.

Let's face it, with every builder in Valpo targeting the affluent, the cost of living isn't in the budget for a young professional, such as a police officer or teacher. The restaurants that helped put Valpo on the map can't find cooks and servers. Valparaiso's future depends on the next generation, which requires both income-based apartments and luxury apartments. Fortunately, Valpo's best downtown apartment complex is rebranding and now has both luxury and affordable housing.

Uptown East meets  Downtown East Apartments | Luxury Meets Affordable Housing

[caption id="attachment_9075" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Uptown East revitalized Valpo's Downtown East[/caption]

When Uptown East was first established, it was a sight for sore eyes. At the time Valparaiso's downtown experienced its recent revitalization, but the city's east side near Valparaiso University was a mess. VU was unhappy and it was a poor reception for visitors coming from the East. In addition, the streets were in decay, and the infrastructure was antiquated. It was in desperate need of some love.

One developer named Larry Gough was at the center of Valpo's revitalized downtown. Gough believed the cornerstone of a healthy community is building affordable housing that attracts the next generation.

[caption id="attachment_9077" align="aligncenter" width="300"] IPA's Larry Gough[/caption]

Gough was passionate about his community and would volunteer whenever initiatives would contribute to a healthy Valparaiso. He helped establish the Junior Triathlon and collaborated with others to create music and food festivals.

With Valparaiso's downtown fully revitalization, Gough set his sights on revitalizing the city's east side and area surrounding VU's entrance. Gough and his IPA team developed Uptown East as a means of attracting students and businesses to the eastside corridor. It made sense! The luxurious apartment complex attracted affluent students to attend Valpo University. With world-class amenities, Uptown raised the bar and attracted new businesses and infrastructural improvements. The IPA model was both smart and sustainable.

Valpo's Luxury Apartments was a Success until VU's Policy Changed

Living at Uptown East's luxurious apartments was a huge success. Students from around the world were choosing VU over other elite schools from around the Midwest. The Uptown East Apartment complex demonstrated that if you create the right housing opportunities, Valpo was capable of attracting tomorrow's rockstars.

 

The Uptown East Apartments came furnished with new kitchens, modern appliances, private balconies, and new furniture. Each unit was designed by interior decorators and the clubhouse had the accruements of a resort. But the sustainable model relied on students' ability to live off-campus.

With declining enrollment, then-President Mark Heckler of Valpo University made it mandatory that students live on campus until their Senior year. VU's new policy blindsided Uptown East and forced them to find a new way to serve their community.

Uptown Finds New Meaning While Helping Old Friends

[caption id="attachment_9402" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Gough helped bring the community together. This Photo was shot from IPA's Downtown Office[/caption]   [caption id="attachment_9569" align="aligncenter" width="191"] Valpo's Uptown Fights [/caption]

With VU's new policy, Uptown East Apartments needed to find a new business model to sustain itself. Fortunately, the solution would benefit the same restaurant friends that Gough worked with years earlier to revitalize Valpo's downtown.

 The idea may have never developed if Uptown East wasn't embedded in Valpo's community. Over the years, Uptown East's management was expected to work shoulder-to-shoulder with the other businesses in the community. It was at one of the Valpo Restaurant meetings that the chefs discussed the staffing crisis at each restaurant. It was agreed that without quality and affordable housing in Valpo, the restaurants would continue their struggle to find the right people to cook, serve and maintain the high standards people expect from Valpo restaurants.

It wasn't enough to have affordable housing. Valpo would need to offer the highest standards to attract quality people.

"Need" was the Driving Force for Downtown East

"Help our cooks and servers find affordable housing!"

-Don Quijote's Chef Carlos Rivero

It was during the outbreak of COVID that it was evident that Valparaiso had an Achilles heel. While supply chain issues were difficult to navigate through, it was staffing issues that threatened the restaurant's survival.

Chefs and restaurant owners were near their breaking point. It became evident that Valparaiso's housing opportunities were priced above the budgets of a restaurant's cooks, servers, and other employees.  But it wasn't just the restaurants that couldn't find staff, it was every type of business and institution in the community.

[caption id="attachment_9246" align="aligncenter" width="960"] Radius-Valpo helped make Valpo a destination with remarkable service. The next generation needs affordable housing![/caption]

That's when Uptown decided that they had the resources to create a solution. The apartment complex had four buildings set up for luxury. By converting two of the buildings from 2-bedroom apartments and 3-bedroom apartments into studios and 1-bedroom apartments, they could rebrand the building as Downtown East for young professionals, which is also called workforce housing. The other buildings would remain as all-inclusive, luxury apartments with 2-bedroom and 3-bedroom apartments. The luxury apartments would be differentiated by keeping their name as Uptown East.

Valpo's Workforce Housing

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

[caption id="attachment_9214" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Valpo's Downtown East & Uptown East share Valpo's best location [/caption]

With excitement in the air, the Uptown staff was discovering new opportunities for helping the next generation afford to live in Valparaiso. By qualifying for federal assistance, Downtown East could offer luxurious amenities with income-restricted values.

While Workforce Housing might seem too good to be true, there are income restrictions to qualify. The income-restricted apartments are a great way for Valpo's young professionals to find affordable housing close to where they work, it should be pointed out that the assistance program is intended to help people get their start while living in a safe community. To learn more about who qualifies, you'll want to set up an appointment with Downtown East. They're passionate about their jobs and will even offer you a tour! Here is a link to schedule a time. 

But the great news is Valparaiso also has luxury apartments, also called "executive apartments" for people that don't qualify for income-restricted housing. With a range of diverse housing options, Valparaiso's future leaders and restaurant owners can nurture their roots in Porter County

Learn more about Workforce Housing