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From page 1 timating numbers will be close to 2019.

From east to west, here are some of the major development projects, proposed and in construction.

Grandis Pond

Grandis Pond is a housing project east of Harvey Road that

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is expected to have 387 homes in its first subdivision and 1,000 homes within the next two decades. The project will have seven subdivisions made up of single-family, cottage homes, duplexes and fourplexes. Grandis Pond also has an area for a fire station and 48,000 square feet of commercial space.

Developer Ken Hertz, president of Bellingham-based Blossom Management, said he hopes construction could start in 2024 after infrastructure is installed. Hertz has been working with the city of Blaine and east Blaine developers Skip and Katie Jansen to obtain funding to install the infrastructure through tax-increment financing (TIF) and an Economic Development Investment Program grant and low-interest loan combination through Whatcom County. TIF would allow the city to borrow money from expected increases in property tax revenues from a designated area in east Blaine to pay for water, sewer and street construction.

The project has been stalled for several years due to the lack of infrastructure, which is also part of the reason Harbor Custom Development (HCD) has delayed closing the sale to purchase Grandis Pond, Hertz said. HCD, a Gig-Harbor based real estate company, entered a contract to purchase Grandis Pond for $14 million in December 2021. The contract expires at the end of 2023, Hertz said, adding that sale meetings remain positive.

“East Blaine development is going to be a big asset to the entire county because there’s very few pieces of property available with utilities, outside of the flood plain and outside of the agriculture area,” Hertz said. “This is a prime location in Whatcom County and northwest Washington.”

East Harbor Hills

Grandis Pond will connect to East Harbor Hills and then The Ridge at Harbor Hills through Harbor Hills Parkway. Blaine developers Skip and Katie Jansen, of JIJ Corporation, are developing both East Harbor Hills and The Ridge.

The developers are still working on engineering and entitlements for the 144-acre property, which is east of Harvey Road and north of H Street Road. The area is zoned for 600 homes but Skip Skip Jansen said he wasn’t sure they’d reach that density because of wetlands.

The Jansens would like to include a large manufactured home park in East Harbor Hills to create more affordable housing options. Before proposing the project to the city, they need the zoning to be changed, which has spurred backlash from east Blaine residents. The project is still far out and would ultimately need city council approval.

Skip Jansen said he anticipates East Harbor Hills could be constructed by 2030.

The Ridge at Harbor Hills City council is expected to consider the final plat application for the second phase of The Ridge at Harbor Hills, formerly known as East Maple Ridge, in the next few months, according to the city. The second phase would bring another 78 residential lots to the 88-acre property, which has a total of total 350 units planned.

The Ridge broke ground early last year and has more than a dozen homes occupied, Skip Jansen said. Over 100 people are working on developing and constructing the property’s single-family and multi-family units.

Skip Jansen said the name changed to The Ridge to emphasize its high elevation after the November 2021 flooding. The property has a trail network, city park and 24,000-square-foot space for future commercial development.

Skip Jansen expects The Ridge to be complete at the end of 2025.

Lincoln Mews

Construction is expected to start this spring on Lincoln Mews, a 53-unit townhouse project at H Street and Odell Road, said Blair Murray, developer and owner of Tin Rock Development. The 4.7acre project will have duplexes, triplexes and detached dwelling units as well as vehicle access on Ludwick Avenue.

Blaine hearing examiner Rajeev Majumdar approved Lincoln Mews’s conditional use permit in August 2022. The project’s first phase will include a stormwater pond and infrastructure for the first 16 units. Murray said Lincoln Mews is expected to be complete by 2026.

Gateway property

Taco Bell opened in December 2022 and McDonald’s is expected to open by May, Jason White, vice president of marketing at White-Leasure Development Company, told The Northern Light earlier this month. White-Leasure has three lots remaining to be sold on the Gateway property at the old airport site.

Pratschner said the city would have a preapplication meeting with O’Reilly Auto Parts and a car wash could potentially go there as well. “They’ll likely be establishing themselves there pretty soon,” Pratschner said of O’Reilly.

Family Care Network (FCN) president and CEO Dr. Rodney Anderson was not available after several attempts for an interview. A FCN spokesperson said in an email that FCN will continue to work with its contractor and hopes to have an estimated timeline later this year. FCN purchased the 2.5-acre property from the city in June 2021 after several delays because of the pandemic. Dr. Anderson said last August that the clinic was expected to have a handful of primary care doctors but growing construction costs put the urgent care and X-ray in question.

Modern mixed-use building

Windermere Real Estate broker Jen Freeman, who is developing the modern mixed-use building on H and 3rd streets, said she could not give an estimate on when construction would be finished or who the first floor tenant would be. The first floor will have a 1,000-square-foot commercial unit and the top two floors will be a residential unit. The building was one of the first to be reviewed under the city of Blaine’s 2018 downtown design code.

Martin Street buildings

The city is reviewing a proposal for three buildings at the corner of Martin and 4th streets. The buildings will be two stories each, with one building having a 1,120 feet of commercial space and the other two having one-bedroom duplexes. Pratschner said she anticipated construction could start within the next month. Blaine resident Doug Dahl, who is developing the property, said he doesn’t have any tenants lined up yet.

Georgia Street triplexes

Two triplexes are being built at the corner of Georgia Street and Mitchell Avenue. The properties, which started construction two months ago, should be