03022009 - News Article - Dalton Arms project languishes

Dalton Arms project languishes

Post-Tribune (IN)
March 2, 2009

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GARY -- Millions of tax dollars and more than a decade after talk of restoring the dormant downtown structure began, little information seems to be available about the status of repairs at the Dalton Apartments building. 

Shawn Loyden, managing member of Florida-based Gary Progress Development LP, hasn't returned several phone calls about his work at the building in the 100 block of East 5th Avenue, despite signs of new construction. 

Mayor Rudy Clay referred questions about the project to Gary-East Chicago-Hammond Empowerment Zone Director Scott Upshaw. 

"The project was moving along as far as I knew," Upshaw said. 

Upshaw and Jacquelyn Drago - Hunter , director of Gary's Community Development department, said their offices have invested a combined $5.4 million in federal funds into the project. 

The developers are expected to pay back the $2.5 million Empowerment Zone loan in July, Upshaw said. Drago - Hunter , however, said payments on her office's $2.9 million loan will be made secondary to a private bank's investment. 

Payment will also depend, Drago - Hunter said, on completion of construction. Viewings of the building's units were supposed to begin as early as this month, Upshaw said. He and Drago - Hunter estimated work there to be 50 percent to 65 percent complete. 

No definite completion date was given, though. 

"You probably should talk to Shawn Loyden," Drago - Hunter said. 

For more than 10 years, various developers talked about renovating the empty building. Several bonds and loans have been issued, but it still stands empty. Loyden took over the project in 2003. 

In 2005, Loyden said he would restore the 1928 Art Deco building to serve as a 57-unit apartment building with restaurants and businesses on the ground floor. He said he hoped to finish the work as early as 2007. 

"As of right now, because of the Wall Street cave-in, we can ask for an extension if a project needs additional time," Drago - Hunter said. 

* Renovation moves slowly despite infusion of  federal funds over the years. 

Caption: Construction continues on the former Dalton Arms building on 5th Avenue in Gary. Up to $5.4 million in federal funding has gone into the project. Hopes of completing restoration of the 1928 Art Deco building as early as 2007 have been dashed. Scott M. Bort/Post-Tribune