Yet another condominium project in Detroit is on life support.

The developer behind the planned $377 million The Mid project just north of Detroit's Whole Foods Inc. store says that it's "unlikely" the dozens of high-end condos that were planned as part of the two high-rises envisioned for the site will be developed after all.

"We are evaluating luxury extended stay along with luxury multi-family for the residential units," Turkia Mullin, a real estate executive working on the project, said in a statement to Crain's. "The team has not made final decisions regarding changes to the program; however, it is unlikely we will develop condos."

Another project representative declined to say why they are now unlikely, although other luxury condo projects have been challenged in the last year or so.

It's just the latest residential project in the city to take a difficult body blow. Developers of similarly upscale new luxury condo projects in and around downtown have said high construction costs have eaten away at their anticipated developer profit margins; lower-priced condos in Brush Park and Midtown, for example, have been completed.

The Mid's condo component is one of at least five residential projects in the city that have been scrapped or put on hold, largely as a result of high costs to build. Many developers say in general terms that they've seen price swings about 30 percent from when they first priced projects out as labor shortages have driven up costs and put a pinch on building plans.

Cost estimating is an inexact science and varies widely depending on a host of factors, ranging from materials costs to location to the labor market.

"Location, the design has an impact, the size of the units has an impact," said Randy Abdallah, executive vice president for Detroit-based construction giant Walbridge Aldinger Co. "If you're doing 1,000-square-foot units, you have more kitchens and plumbing than if you're doing a 3,000-square-foot unit."

Data from Marshall & Swift Valuation Service provided to Crain's shows that the cost per square foot to build high-rise Class A apartment buildings in the city has increased about 21 percent since 2010, with the most recent estimate being $169 per square foot in November 2018. That figure is for new high-rise buildings — which are rare in the city — and doesn't factor in the cost for things like balconies, sprinkler systems, fireplaces, built-in appliances and others which add to the overall cost.

But local construction experts like developers and others say those Marshall & Swift figures are on the low side of things, perhaps more reflective of costs in 2016 than 2018 or 2019 (a message was sent to Marshall & Swift for comment). For example, Abdallah said multifamily projects he has priced out have ranged from about $205 to $250 per square foot.

"That's a number we are having a hard time achieving on stick-built, four-story construction projects, let alone high-rise," said David Di Rita, principal of Detroit-based developer The Roxbury Group, which redeveloped the building now known as The Plaza, immediately north of Ciena Healthcare CEO Mohammad Qazi's The Mid project, which was announced as having a 25-story tower and a 30-story tower on 3.78 acres of land he picked up for $15 million. It has undergone a couple modifications since. "We are doing high-rise hospitality in Midtown and I would be doing handstands doing $170 a foot."

"We have found it tough to get anything built less than $225 per square foot and even that's a push," said Clifford Brown, managing partner of Detroit-based developer Woodborn Partners LLC, which is working on projects in southwest Detroit as well as the Lafayette Park neighborhood.

"If the costs to build were consistent with (those Marshall & Swift numbers) I think we would see significantly more construction occurring right now," Brown said.