A dilapidated building on a high-profile corner in Highland Park is proposed to be razed and replaced with a structure that includes residential and commercial uses, officials from Invest DSM announced.

Benchmark Real Estate Group had planned on renovating the structure, which was built in 1915. However, the expense to make all of the necessary improvements was too great.

Instead, Benchmark sold the property at 3524 Sixth Ave. to Invest DSM for $440,000 in a transaction recorded on March 10, real estate records show.  

“This was a building that we really wanted to see saved,” Amber Lynch, Invest DSM’s executive director, said in a video produced by the city of Des Moines. “Unfortunately, it [has] gotten to the point where it’s not economically feasible to do so.”

In 2021 it was estimated that it would cost $2.6 million to renovate the building, which anchors the southwest corner of Sixth and Euclid avenues, an entryway into the Highland Park business district. The estimate was included in a city document about plans to redevelop the property to include street-level commercial space and 14 multifamily units on the second and third floors.

Restoration costs, though, have climbed to $4.8 million, Christopher Civitate, neighborhood development manager for Invest DSM, said in the video. In a portion of the building, ceilings are caved in. Mold damage exists throughout the building.

“The [exterior] walls are in great shape; the foundation is in great shape,” Civitate said. “Everything else in the building is failing.”

Plans now include demolishing the building, a step that must be approved by Des Moines’ Landmark Review Board and City Council. If approved, the site will be redeveloped.

Invest DSM, a joint effort between the city of Des Moines and Polk County to expand revitalization efforts in the city’s neighborhoods, owns three properties to the west of 3524 Sixth Ave. The four parcels will be combined. Plans call for the Commons at Highland Park to include a four-story structure with between 40 and 50 residential units and street-level commercial space to be built on the site.

“The future is very bright for the business district at Sixth and Euclid and for the Oak Park and Highland Park neighborhoods,” Lynch said. “This is an area where people really want to be.”

A flurry of redevelopment has occurred in the area in the past five years. The building in which Chuck’s Restaurant is located was renovated. Highland Park Bakery opened in an upgraded space, as did Des Moines Mercantile and Slow Down Coffee Co. Renovation of a building at 3524 Sixth Ave. is complete and the building has several new tenants.

About one-half mile to the south, numerous improvements have been made to Riverview Park. Neighborhood Development Corp. recently purchased former warehouse property adjacent to the park and is making plans to redevelop it.

A timeline for development of the Commons at Highland Park was not available.

“It’s not going to happen overnight,” Civitate said.

To view the video about the Commons at Highland Park, click here.