Mayor Tom Henry today led a groundbreaking ceremony to commemorate the beginning of construction on a $98 million downtown development that will transform Fort Wayne's skyline.

The Ash Brokerage Corporation and Hanning & Bean Enterprises development is a public-private partnership, which includes a new national corporate headquarters for Ash, a residential component led by Hanning & Bean, retail space, and a publicly owned parking garage. The development is bordered by Wayne, Harrison, Berry, and Webster streets and utilizes nearly a full square block.

Tim Ash, chief executive officer of Ash Brokerage and Bill Bean, VP of Hanning & Bean Enterprises joined Mayor Henry, community leaders, other elected officials, and neighborhood advocates for today's ceremony.

Officials from Ash Brokerage today announced its new building will be known as "Ash Skyline Plaza." The Hanning & Bean housing component will be known as "Skyline Terrace."

Ash Brokerage is the largest independently owned brokerage agency in the United States serving insurance agents, financial advisors, registered representatives and career agents nationwide. Ash's investment of up to $29 million includes 95,000 square feet of office space. More than 200 employees will be part of Ash's move to downtown, with an anticipated increase of 115 local jobs over the next few years.

Hanning & Bean Enterprises is investing $30 million in the construction of a residential development including 80 apartments (77,000 square feet), 10-14 condominiums (16,000 square feet), and six street-front townhouses (11,750 square feet). There will also be 23,800 square feet of first-floor retail space to be co-developed by Ash and Hanning & Bean. A tenant commitment has already been made by Lake City Bank to the commercial space. In addition, there will be a rooftop park/green space on top of the parking garage.

The City of Fort Wayne will construct a 1,200 space parking garage to meet current needs, anticipated growth and future development in the downtown area. The City's investment of $39 million includes the parking garage, land acquisition, site preparation, streetscape improvements, utility upgrades, as well as other project enhancements. Funding for the City's investment in the development comes from a combination of tax increment financing (TIF) funds through the Fort Wayne Redevelopment Commission, Legacy funds, and support from the Allen County-Fort Wayne Capital Improvement Board (CIB). No property taxes are being used to fund the City's portion of the project.

Projected construction schedule:

*June – Site preparation work

*August – Work begins on the parking garage

*February 2015 – Work begins on the Ash tower

*May 2015 – Work begins on the Hanning & Bean tower

*December 2015 – Substantial completion of the parking garage

*March 2016 – Substantial completion of the Ash tower

*October/November 2016 – Substantial completion of the Hanning & Bean tower