FARGO — When the Fargo Planning Commission meets Tuesday, Sept.3, one item it will consider is a request from developer Jesse Craig for a subdivision and zoning map amendment to accommodate a proposed project in the Oak Grove neighborhood near downtown Fargo that would include about 94 apartment units, 24 condos and 11 to 14 town houses.

The plan has the recommendation of city planning staff, but it has been a source of worry and concern for some who live in the neighborhood, including Paul Seminary, a resident of the Oak Grove area since 1991.

Seminary wrote a two-page letter to the city listing misgivings he has regarding the project, among them being the potential for the housing development to increase traffic and crime near his home.

"We understand and believe in the city growth," Seminary wrote. "But we want to emphasize that the growth should follow the design of the neighborhood. The proposed apartment complex is a very large project that doesn't fit the footprint of this historical neighborhood."

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The upscale apartments, condos and town homes contemplated in the The River Lofts would be built in a block that is currently mostly an empty lot.

At a previous public meeting where the project was discussed, Jesse Craig said town houses were added to the project in an attempt to buffer the apartment complex from the surrounding neighborhood, similar to the Newman Center project in Fargo, which also added single-family town houses as a neighborhood buffer.

At the earlier meeting, neighborhood residents critical of the plan said they believed the new construction, which includes a five-story apartment and condo complex, would not fit well with the existing neighborhood and argued that traffic and parking could pose problems.

Craig said in a phone interview last week that Tuesday's Planning Commission meeting is intended to address zoning issues that must be satisfied before platting matters can move forward. He said building permits would be pursued once platting matters are addressed.

He said there is a possibility the project will seek Renaissance Zone tax breaks, with the idea being the additional resources would be used to make the project as aesthetically pleasing as possible for future owners, tenants and the neighborhood in general.

"I want to make sure we make that (project) very attractive for that neighborhood," said Craig, who added he has attended five or six public gatherings regarding the plan, and he said he has done his best to address concerns voiced by residents of the neighborhood.

Craig said the most recent meeting was attended by eight to 10 residents and, of those, two had concerns about the height of proposed structures.

The project would be built in two phases, according to Craig, who said the first phase would be the apartment complex and condos and the second phase would involve the town homes.

Tuesday's Planning Commission meeting is set for 3 p.m. in Fargo City Hall.