GRANDVILLE, MI - Developer Roger Lucas, a partner in Land & Co., dreams of building castles in his hometown.

Lucas is proposing to build "The Grand Castle," an apartment community patterned after Neuschwanstein, a Bavarian castle, on the former site of the LaGrande Mobile Home Park along 28th Street SW east of the I-196 exit.

"I've always thought castles were beautiful. I always thought they would make great apartment buildings," said Lucas, who said he has toured castles in Europe on several occasions.

Built by Bavarian King Ludwig in the 19th century, the fantastical Neuschwanstein also served as the inspiration for Disney World's Cinderella's Castle.

Featuring a 12-story apartment tower with castle turrets, the development would bring 460 rental units to the 23.6-acre site.

Lucas said the first phase of the development would create a 356-unit apartment building that sits on top of two parking decks with 580 spaces.

"Our target is people who want to live in something nicer than what's available now and want to live in Grandville," Lucas said. It will be the first new development in 20 years for Land & Co., which operates 19 apartment communities in West Michigan, he said.

The Grand Castle development also would capitalize on its location near a key freeway exit, he said.

"Anyplace you want to go in West Michigan, you get there in a hurry," he said. "We think some people from downtown will want to live here because they don't have the parking issues. Our parking is included in the rent."

The development also would capitalize on the 26-acre Sandford Lake, a former gravel pit located next to the development, Lucas said.

A second phase of the project would create a series of 13 two-story "carriage houses" around the larger structure. The carriage houses would include a total of 104 units. The second phase also would include a retail and office development along the 28th Street frontage.

The Planned Unit Development will be considered for approval by the Grandville City Council on July 13. The project passed muster with the Grandville Planning Commission on June 3.

Although the main building would be the tallest structure for miles, Grandville's Fire Department signed off on the project because of its all-concrete construction and the fact the entire building will be equipped with sprinklers, said Assistant City Manager Matthew Butts.

The Planning Commission also struggled with the development's single point of entrance onto 28th Street SW. Traffic engineers recommended the intersection be studied for congestion before the permit for the second phase is issued, Butts said.

Although the project will add to Grandville's population, it replaces a mobile home park which once held up to 1,000 residents, Butts said.

Originally built in 1957, LaGrande Mobile Home Park was West Michigan's oldest mobile home park. It was closed in 2005 by Land & Co. and has been vacant ever since.

Jim Harger covers business for MLive/Grand Rapids Press. Email him at jharger@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter or Facebook or Google+.