Medford breaks ground on new housing

Medford’s future got a little brighter Tuesday morning with the formal groundbreaking for a 64-unit apartment complex near the city’s industrial park.

Local business leaders and dignitaries with the Medford Area Development Foundation, Taylor County Board and city council gathered at Pep’s Drive to mark the formal start of construction.

Developers plan to have units available to lease by fall as additional sections of the development are built.

The project is being built by Fore Development with brothers Tom, Dan and Jack Klister leading it. Fore Development Inc. was established in 2016 by brothers Dan, Tom, and Jack Klister with the goal to develop and acquire quality commercial real estate assets across the state of Wisconsin. Unique prior work experiences and a family upbringing in the industry, has been crucial to the team’s success when sourcing, evaluating, and executing on new opportunities.

The Klister brothers participated in Tuesday’s groundbreaking ceremony and praised the amount of cooperation and support they have received from the city of Medford, the Development Foundation, Medford Area Chamber of Commerce and the business community.

“The Medford Area Development Foundation and its Housing Committee are very happy to see this project officially underway,”said John Lange, who along with Chris Schield serve as co-chairs of the Medford Area Development Foundation Housing Committee.

“We are excited to see investment in housing within our community, and we are eager for the community to realize its positive impact.” Lange said. “The construction of these 64 apartment units comes at an important time for our area,” Lange said.

“Our local businesses have grown considerably in recent years and this has created hundreds of job openings. Additional housing that ranges from apartments to single family homes continues to be needed to support the growth of our community. We are hopeful this development will spur additional housing investments in Medford and the surrounding area,” Lange said.

Mayor Mike Wellner also spoke echoing the sentiment that the project’s beginning was another great day for Medford.

“This is a perfect example of working together for our community,” Wellner said. He praised all those who had a part in the project.

“From the beginning where Jon Knoll introduced us to the Fore Company to where we stand today, many, many hours have gone into this project,” Wellner said.

“Thanks to the City Council for their foresight when presented with the plan,” Wellner said. “Thanks to the collaborative effort with Joe Harris - our City Coordinator and the Housing Committee of the Economic Development Foundation this project is here today,” he said.

“We are very pleased and proud that we could work together for this outcome,” Wellner said.