Marion advances mixed-use project that will add hundreds of new housing units

MARION — A massive new mixed-use development called Rookwood Estates will add about 1,000 housing units to Marion over several phases in the coming years, creating new housing stock amid a shortage.

An entity led by Marion-based developer Chad Pelley of Twenty40 Building Concepts will build the homes in phases north of Highway 151 over the next decade or so.

The Marion City Council this week approved rezoning the east portion of the development — a 121.04-acre site south of Fernow Road and east of Bluegrass Street — from AG, Agricultural Holding, to PUD, Planned Unit Development.

Another Rookwood phase is under construction to the immediate west of the site.

With public investment in city parks and a nearby school being built in the Linn-Mar Community School District, Pelley said the project represents a partnership between himself and the city of Marion.

This phase of the project, Rookwood East, includes a variety of housing types, with a total of 577 units planned:

Pelley said price points would vary from approximately $200,000 and more for owner-occupied housing. Rental costs also would vary but he said he hopes to keep that housing market-rate.

Marion’s 2022 Housing Needs Assessment, completed by Maxfield Research and Consulting in September 2022, identified a potential demand for 2,739 new general occupancy housing units in Marion between 2022 and 2030.

The analysis stated that assessors in the tri-city area reported “a mix of low interest rates, the impact of the (2020) derecho and generally a seller’s market have combined to create substantial demand for homes.”

That resulted in the average home value in Marion spiking by more than 8 percent in 2020 and 2021 and from January 2022 through August 2022, with the average sale price climbing to $282,140 at that point in 2022.

As someone born and raised in Marion, Pelley said this project is “near and dear” to him.

“This is my community,” Pelley said. “They helped raise me. I want to give back … To me, that means developing neighborhoods — not just subdivisions and not just suburbia, but an all-inclusive, all-encompassing, amenity-rich, sustainable neighborhood that has housing for all, as well as things to do — people, walkable parks, trails, wetlands and playgrounds and dog parks and you name it.”

Commercial users are not lined up yet, but Pelley said he wants it to be walkable and provide a variety of things to do, creating an inviting vibe like in Salt like City where neighborhood commercial areas entice people to engage with multiple retailers and services or outdoor activities.

He said work will likely focus on housing first to get the households to support commercial activity.

Every one will have a front porch so people are engaged and interacting throughout the development, Pelley said.

By intentionally being conscious of the environment and restoring prairies and wetland, he said the goal is to attract like-minded people to this “destination of Marion.”

“It represents a master-plan, large-scale development in a small community,” Pelley said.

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