Community Stories

City grant supports new downtown apartments

March 26, 2021

Downtown property owner Arpit Cheba has completed construction on a new 5-plex apartment building in downtown Red Deer, resulting from a grant from The City of Red Deer.

Following vandalism and demolition of a nearby home that she owned, Cheba was ready to sell the lot and transfer her investments to another city. When a friend drew her attention to The City’s Downtown Economic Incentives funding program, she decided to give the property’s future a second thought. Cheba was successful in obtaining $170,000 in funding from The City towards the project, within the Residential and Mixed Use Development Grant and Utility Connection Fee Rebate categories, based on the project’s total value being $1-4 million.

“The intention of this funding program is to promote the development of newly constructed multi-family residential and/or mixed use projects in the greater downtown area,” said Jason Taylor, Divisional Strategist for the Development and Protective Services division. “The program was designed to encourage high quality housing options in our downtown, to make it easy for residents to choose to live in our city’s core, along with increasing activity and growth opportunities for downtown businesses.”

Construction on the building, located on 48 Avenue, was completed in February and all units have been filled. New tenants have cited convenience, affordability and quality in their decision to rent.

Following completion of the 5-plex, Cheba is proceeding with construction on a new 10-plex apartment building, located on the same block. She is also part owner of the new 3-Robins apartment building, adjacent to the 5-plex.

“These projects will restore confidence and charisma back to downtown Red Deer,” said Arpit Cheba. “With three new buildings, this entire city block has been revitalized for the next 50 years. The future of downtown Red Deer is bright.”