St. Clair condo development may break ground this summer

New condominiums could soon be erected off Carney Drive in St. Clair.

Site plans for the Meadowland Development LLC got the OK from the city’s planning commission last week, and so far, developers expect to break ground to prepare the site sometime this summer.

According to the plan’s layout, the site, dubbed “Belle Maison” and located on the east side of Carney between Camberwell Apartments and the Delano Street neighborhood, would include a single roadway with 23 duplexes and 46 total units.

“There’s two different building designs," said Pieprzak, vice president of field operations for TR Pieprzak Co Inc., representing Meadowland, explaining that one design will include a pairing of two-story condos and the other will be a split level concept with a first-floor master/bath.

“I think they’re pretty close to the same square footage.”

Pieprzak put that range roughly at 1,500 to 1,600 square feet.

He said they expected to break ground to prepare the site sometime this summer.

“I think it’ll be ready for building by late fall, I would guess,” Pieprzak said, adding full condo construction would be dependent on interest.

Meadowlands Development, whose state-registered agent is Terry Pieprzak, first purchased the property last October for $242,655. St. Clair’s City Council and planning commissioners signed off on a rezoning for the property — it’s now a more-flexible planned unit development zone — last fall.  

Phil Porte, of BMJ Engineers and Surveyors, said the Belle Maison site was just over 11 acres in total size, 6.3 acres of which were slated for development while “preserving wooded wetland at the east end.”

Despite site plan approval, development officials still must work out whether the new condo enclave would include public or private road. Pieprzak told planning commissioners, “It is our preference that it be a public drive.”

Meadowlands Development is also behind Meadowlands Estates in China Township.

While apartment developments have been more common in the city of St. Clair, Pieprzak said, “It’s something they don’t have in the (local) towns — duplex condos like that,” preferring to preset neighborhoods usually behold to terms of a condo association. Across the street from the Belle Maison site is other ongoing residential development.

Discussion on their plans was brief among planning commissioners last week, though Commissioner Paul Wade added, “I think from the plans submitted here they’re going to be good-looking units. They’re going to fit in really nice.”

Pieprzak said those interested in a condo build can reach out through Bellemaison.st.clair@gmail.com.

Contact Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Jackie20Smith.