First building in Gateway Loft at the Marina District expected to open in October

TOLEDO, Ohio — A major development project in east Toledo is really beginning to take shape.

"I was like, 'Wow, something new,'" Kyle Walters of Monroe said.

He regularly visits Toledo and saw the construction while walking his dog along the waterfront.

"I just think they're bringing the city back. And just to see more people coming into the city. New things. It's great," Walters said.

The promise from a foreign company to develop the land years ago didn't come through. So, if you have to see the latest promise to believe it, the city says, 'take a look.'

"It's really starting to come out of the ground now, which is really exciting," said Commissioner of Economic and Business Development, Brandon Sehlhorst.

The project is called Gateway Lofts at the Marina District. It includes 360 apartments, along with some commercial space.

Selhhorst said the work being done in east Toledo is important.

"Brand new investment, obviously. A new look from people who may not have been over there previously. It's really not just this investment, but the Marina District, the Nautical Mile, connecting everything that's going on within the urban court to the neighborhoods," he said.

The brick is being laid on the clubhouse. It's the building closest to the river and the one the city said will be finished first in just a matter of months.

"Will be completed, I believe, in October. That will house the leasing office, the community center and also the prospective restaurant," Sehlhorst said.

There is no word yet on which restaurant is coming. The city said the leasing office is expected to open in November. Apartments will be ready for tenants in February of next year.