A 107-year-old, vacant apartment building will likely be razed and replaced with a surface parking lot that will accommodate patrons of businesses in an area surrounding 28th Street and Ingersoll Avenue in Des Moines.

The city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment this week approved changing the use of property at 516 28th St. to allow a surface parking lot on the parcel. The property’s owner, Randy Reichardt, also owns a one-story commercial building across the street that he has spent over $2.5 million renovating.

Parking is limited around the renovated building, which includes Chain & Spoke, and will soon include event space and another commercial business, Reichardt said. The proposed parking lot will provide a place for patrons of his building to park. Patrons of other nearby businesses will also be able to park in the lot during parts of the day, the board was told.

“Normally, I would not be up here speaking in support of a surface parking lot, but today I am,” Lauren Kollauf, executive director of The Avenues, told the board. The Avenues promotes businesses, public arts initiatives and events along Grand and Ingersoll avenues. It also supports making the area more walkable and bikeable.

“This parking lot would be uniquely placed so that it’s not fronting Ingersoll; it’s not fronting Grand. It’s tucked onto 28th Street,” Kollauf said. “This is a very popular corner with a lot of popular long-time and newer restaurants that all share very limited off-street parking. This additional parking would take some of the stress and pressure off of those existing businesses.”

Tim Rypma, a local developer who is part of the ownership group of apartment buildings at 2801 Grand Ave., also supports the proposed surface parking lot.

“The property we are discussing has been a nuisance for several years,” Rypma said of the apartment building. “It has decades of deferred maintenance. … [The parking lot] will alleviate the parking congestion we have on 28th Street.”

Reichardt bought the apartment property in May for $650,000, real estate records show. He said he had hoped to renovate the building, which includes 13 units, but it wasn’t financially feasible. Reichardt’s application to demolish the building is under review by city staff.

Reichardt acquired the commercial property at 515 28th St. in 2020. The building, which was vacant, was on Des Moines’ list of nuisance properties. Numerous improvements were made to the structure, including on the mezzanine level that includes access to a rooftop patio.

Chain & Spoke, a combination coffee and bicycle shop, opened in about 2,000 square feet of the building in spring 2023. Reichardt said he recently started actively marketing the remaining 8,000 square feet of space. His goal is for a restaurant to be in the space.

“There are already some great restaurants in the area, and I’d like to see that continue,” Reichardt said.