Firehouse Flats: What the Project Could Mean for Downtown Vincennes
VINCENNES, Ind. (We Are Knox County) - A proposed downtown housing development first introduced in 2025 could bring nearly 100 new apartments to downtown Vincennes.
Franklin, Indiana-based AP Development is proposing Firehouse Flats.
The project includes two downtown properties.
AP Development plans to build the largest portion on the city-owned public parking lot at Third and Vigo streets.
Plans provided to We Are Knox County show a four-story apartment building with 89 units on that site.
The apartments would include a mix of studios and one-, two- and three-bedroom units.
Earlier project documents also include the former Gardner-Brockman Funeral Home at Fifth and Main Streets, where AP Development has proposed up to eight additional apartments.
“We have a purchase agreement pending and so we will be rehabbing that building into apartments as well,” AP Development President Jon Anderson said.
According to Anderson, AP Development focuses much of its work on downtown redevelopment and believes adding residents can help support existing businesses.
“We’re going to bring new residents to downtown to eat in the restaurants, shop in the shops,” Anderson said.
Some nearby business owners say they support the idea of bringing more housing downtown, but they worry about what the project could mean for parking and their day-to-day operations.
Concerns about the project have surfaced publicly for more than a year.
At an August 2025 Redevelopment Commission meeting, business owners raised issues ranging from parking and deliveries to pedestrian safety and dumpster placement.
By April 2026, several downtown property owners had brought their opposition to the proposed location before the Vincennes City Council.
Becky Pea-Stenger, owner of Pea-Fections on Main Street, said her business, employees and customers have relied on the public parking lot for decades.
“That’s something that I’ve been using for 30 years,” Pea-Stenger said.
“My employees and customers have been using it, and they use it every single day.”
Pea-Stenger said customers who cannot find parking may simply go somewhere else, costing her business sales.
“If they cannot find a place to park, they’re not going to order from us, and that means lost sales,” she said.
“If I lose 15 customers a day, that is $200 a day. I don’t know a business that can survive that.”
Do you support the proposed Firehouse Flats development in downtown Vincennes?
Yes — I support the project
No — I do not support the project
Leah and Clint Richter, who operate several downtown businesses, including Pearl and Chrome Home Interiors, Little’s Toy Store and the Grand Bankquet Hall, share similar concerns about parking and convenience.
“If people that are trying to get to Main Street can’t get down here, they’ll make a pass or two then move onto the next place,” Clint said.
“Having a brick-and-mortar store, we need convenience as best as possible. So one of the easiest conveniences is parking close,” Leah added.
The Richters say their concerns go beyond customer parking.
They also own loft apartments above their businesses and their buildings stretch from the sidewalk to the alley, leaving no dedicated parking of their own.
The Richters say they currently encourage tenants to use the public parking lot behind the buildings, especially during the day, rather than taking up spaces along Main Street.
Mayor Joe Yochum says the city plans to have additional parking in place before construction begins.
“One of the parking lots will be directly across the street from City Hall here at that old bank site,” Yochum said.
“We’re in the process of acquiring that property to turn it into parking.”
Yochum said the city is also looking at other locations and expects to create additional on-street parking.
“The plan is to have all the additional parking in place before that construction starts,” Yochum said.
The project’s Economic Development Agreement includes several parking requirements tied to Firehouse Flats.
It calls for up to six on-site spaces that could be available for public use “from time to time,” 15 additional on-street public spaces and requires the city to acquire enough real estate for at least 100 additional public parking spaces, excluding street parking.
A draft of the project budget provided to We Are Knox County by the City of Vincennes puts the total cost of Firehouse Flats and the Lincoln House portion of the project at about $24.3 million.
The draft lists $2.21 million in developer contribution, $12.11 million in long-term financing and a $5.5 million developer-backed, project-based TIF bond.
It also includes $400,000 in READI 2.0 funding for infrastructure, including parking, and $4 million in Lilly Endowment funding for redevelopment and blight removal.
The Economic Development Agreement calls for the city to transfer the city-owned property at Third and Vigo streets to the developer for $1.
A separate draft project budget lists a $100,000 “City of Vincennes Land Contribution,” meaning the budget counts the property itself as part of the project’s funding rather than a $100,000 cash payment from the city.
Yochum said city leaders see Firehouse Flats as part of a larger effort to address housing needs while also bringing more activity downtown.
“We’re working on housing,” Yochum said. “And it’s not just to get people to move here, but it’s also to get our youth to stay here.”
The Vincennes Redevelopment Commission will consider a declaratory resolution for the project Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at Vincennes City Hall.
The project would still need additional approvals after Thursday.
According to the project’s legal financing timetable, the Plan Commission and City Council will consider additional measures, while the Redevelopment Commission and Economic Development Commission will hold public hearings and take further action related to the financing.
The timetable calls for those steps to continue through November, with the bond sale and closing anticipated during the first quarter of 2027.
Anderson told We Are Knox County that if the project receives the necessary approvals and financing moves forward, construction could begin as early as spring 2027.
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