Bonus Episode – Cincinnati Developer Kai Lewars

Developer Kai Lewars specializes in the “missing middle” housing some say Cincinnati so badly needs. The city made it easier to develop duplexes, triplexes, rowhouses, and more under 2024 zoning changes. Lewars finds vacant lots and works with community organizations to build them. He also is committed to building low-income housing. 

Interview guest: Kai Lewars, principal and founder Kaiker Development + Construction. 

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Transcript

Ann Thompson:

Developers play a key role in communities. For this one, it's personal.

Kai Lewars:

Seeing that impact of somebody having keys to their home that will cover their basis of living, not only for them, but other generations in regards to just having something that they can call theirs.

Ann Thompson:

Founder of Cincinnati's Kaiker Development and Construction. Kai Lewars loves seeing people revitalize blighted properties. As a kid, he dreamed of doing it someday.

Kai Lewars:

That's what I actually tell a lot of people. It's big boy Legos, but at the end of the day, Legos come with instructions. At the same time. Legos, you kind of got to know what part, what piece, get familiar, but once you know how to read it, it's all the same.

Ann Thompson:

Come along as we learn how he's bringing more affordable housing to Cincinnati.

Kai Lewars:

For me, my favorite part of the home building process is probably like seeing the impact it makes in people's lives.

Ann Thompson:

This bonus episode is the first of three interviews with developers. Kai Lewars, principal and founder of Kaiker Development and Construction does a lot of infill housing like the kind Cincinnati allowed for more of in its big zoning change Connected Communities last summer. Let's get into it. This is Brick by Brick: Solutions for a thriving community.

Ame Clase:

Brick by Brick is made possible thanks to leading support from AES Ohio Foundation, Greater Cincinnati Foundation and George and Margaret McLane Foundation, with additional support from Laurie F. Johnston,  Murray and Agnes Seasongood Good Government Foundation, The Robert & Adelle Schiff Family Foundation, and more. Thank you.

Ann Thompson:

Hello, and welcome to Brick by Brick, where we're highlighting solutions for a thriving community in southwest Ohio. I'm your host, Ann Thompson. As part of this special bonus episode, I want to take you back to this extended conversation we had with Kai Lewars last year, and we did another interview with him recently to update the status of his projects as the founder of Kaiker Development and Construction in Cincinnati's West End, hear how he's developing and building much needed housing.

Kai Lewars:

I think community engagement is key. We work with a lot of CDCs coming together, collaborating, getting organized, understanding different community resources. That's what's key in community development with putting together qualified housing stock. One of the things that I noticed in just working in a multitude of communities is not every community needs the same thing, so that's why it's not like somebody from the outside can come in. Some developers try to do that and just dictate based off of data or analytics, what the community needs. Sometimes you really just need to get involved, communicate, understand those resources the city has, the county has learn from other communities, and at the end of the day, communities are made up of people. So oftentimes have like-minded individuals or professionals or just other perspectives to be more aware of, to understand what housing needs your community may benefit from most.

Ann Thompson:

Help us understand how that works. I know you've worked with the Avondale Community Council, so let's say you want to build in a particular neighborhood and how do you approach the community?

Kai Lewars:

Yeah, yeah, so first and foremost, two things. Some communities have community councils and that's more for a holistic multitude of issues, concerns, or items on the agenda. And then some communities have what's called development corporation, so it's like a partner in community development, but with a more focus on development. So as a developer, reaching out to that local CDC, understanding what their needs are, understanding where opportunities may lie within the community, they'll really give you a directive of the land. And usually as nonprofits, they're happy to have anybody from the outside come in to help.

Ann Thompson:

Depending upon the project. I guess it can take a long time from start to finish.

Kai Lewars:

Oh yeah.

Ann Thompson:

Give us an idea of what kind of red tape is involved.

Kai Lewars:

Honestly, in the developer space, we find a lot of red tape, but I noticed over the years, patience is key and you have to lead with solutions, right? So there's going to be red tape in development, so being aware of that on the front end often helps overcome it because you're not just bombarded by it or held up by it in its entirety. You're navigating through different processes leading with solutions. But the red tape we see usually starts with either site control. Sometimes it's out of town, out of state investment firm that just is holding like a monopoly board. Other times there may be zoning issues where you have this in mind for the community or you think this is best for the community, even if you've done the engagement to confirm that. But unbeknownst to you, the zoning code doesn't permit that. So you have to go through things like a coordinated site review or zoning variance and things of that sort to more or less get permission to have an exception to these rules.

So that's real red tape. And then the next thing is honestly just the economy that we're in. Thank goodness we're not in the midst of COVID, but we're still seeing a ripple effect of that. Prices have definitely gone down to our benefit, but there's still some projects that we can't even make pencil as a development and construction management shop doing it for ourselves. So really having the numbers connect on the performa, being strategic and utilizing different subsidies, tax credits, grants, things of that sort. There's so much more that can add to bringing these developments to fruition and overcoming the red tape, but you got to have the patience and you got to lead with those solutions.

Ann Thompson:

Are you happy with some of the changes that connected communities made?

Kai Lewars:

Oh, most definitely. We're working on several developments in different communities, scattered site, new construction developments where those communities are going to see a great effect by connected communities, really overcoming some of the middle housing needs and things that were red tape. It's not all solves all, so let's start there. But it definitely helps soothe some of the pains in trying to build new and have some economies of scale. So relative to parking, relative to height, relative to unit count, it really helps change the trajectory to make things a little bit more feasible. But there's still rules, so it's not like a wild wild west. So just like do whatever you want. There's still rules, but they're a little bit more accommodating to infilling this middle housing need within realm of reality of today's society and world and economics.

Ann Thompson:

I wonder what kind of changes the public can expect, not necessarily in the development world like you are. They might wonder, well, how soon are we going to see changes related to density, certain kinds of housing?

Kai Lewars:

Well, I can't answer that for you a hundred percent. I wish I could foresee the future that would be very lucrative for me and the firm, but what I will say is expect it to be a dimmer, not a light switch. Things like this take time and to tell you the truth to the community's benefit, you want it to take time. I know there's other case studies in other areas where they release things like this with connected communities, middle housing type stuff, but the infrastructure doesn't support it. So then sometimes what you can do is have too much development and now you're trying to build the infrastructure to match what's going on. And then in other scenarios, depending on the need, the housing market, the job market, all those things that come into it, you may not see an influx of developers or investment into those communities as of yet.

Sometimes it just takes time, the right person getting there, having success. Some of these projects take just the build process alone can take up to a year. So the development process outside of that, that may be months to a year. So what I would time it to be three to five years is when we should really start seeing the impact of connected communities. And then that way too, this ecosystem of development outside of just the people doing the vertical build, as you know, there's other things relative to the bus line and infrastructure. So those are things where it's like as we holistically develop and our ecosystem develops, you'll really start to see the magnitude of the change.

Ann Thompson:

I hope you're enjoying our conversation with Kai Lewars. There's more still ahead following this short break. This is Brick by Brick.

Ame Clase:

Brick by Brick is made possible thanks to the generous support of so many, including Diane and Dave Moccia, P & G, The Camden Foundation,  The Stephen H. Wilder Foundation, Rosmary & Mark Schlachter, a donation in memory of Frank and Margaret Linhardt, The A. T. Folger Jr. Lowe Simpson Fund and more. Thank you. We couldn't do this work without you.

Mark Lammers:

Hey, we all have a different story even if we grew up in the same neighborhood or city, especially if we're talking about housing stories. Hi, my name is Mark Lammers, executive producer for Brick by Brick. Growing up, I lived on the west side of Cincinnati in a single family home, but I've also experienced apartment life in good and bad settings in a number of different cities. I learned a lot from those times in my life and from my journey as a whole. Now we want to hear about your housing story. That's the new audience question that's live on our show pages at thinktv.org and cetconnect.org. Log in and hit the green button to share your journey and what you learn from it. We hope to share some of your experiences and lessons as we move forward on Brick by Brick, so we can all get smarter together. Thanks.

Ann Thompson:

Welcome back to Brick by Brick. I'm Ann Thompson. Let's get back into our conversation with Kai Lewars of Kaiker Development and Construction. Well, let's talk about what you're doing. So we've heard that it's hard to find a land in Cincinnati to build, but you are finding vacant lots. So how many vacant lots are there in Cincinnati and what are you doing?

Kai Lewars:

Yeah, I mean, I don't know the exact count. I would assume there's thousands. I have a unique approach that where I would say I really once again, lead with a focus in community development and utilizing those relationships to create those land opportunities, and it's worked out very favorable for us to then be able to add value to a multitude of communities in need that have vacant parcels that we would like to see them come to life.

Ann Thompson:

I realize that you have a diverse portfolio. Let's focus on housing. What about the scattered urban infill and middle housing developments that you have going on that you were mentioning?

Kai Lewars:

Yeah, yeah. So we're starting to see a lot of those several dozen of 'em in the pipeline for Q4 and or next year with ourselves and our partners. Some of them are, all the feasibility has been done. Permitting's been applied for state approvals, been done. It's just finalizing the capital stack. I was actually on a call earlier today with a local syndicator on some of the Ohio single family tax credits we're looking at exploring. But yeah, there's a lot of it, particularly town homes and apartments, and I would say Cincinnati's a great marketplace for it right now.

Ann Thompson:

And are you at liberty to say what areas that you're developing those?

Kai Lewars:

I would say the urban core. All right. And to those from Cincinnati, the east and west side of Cincinnati,

Ann Thompson:

Talk about the project that you're working on in Lower Price Hill using historic tax credits.

Kai Lewars:

Yeah, that project's going great. We are in the finishes stages of construction. It'll be completed before year's end and hopefully homes to those in need of one and two bedroom affordable housing units. So that's been a great project thus far. Our project partners and the city's been great to work with, but it's under construction and should be completed before years end.

Ann Thompson:

Any other projects related to housing that you're involved in?

Kai Lewars:

Our primary focus has been a lot of the urban core new construction, but we're involved in a lot of mixed use development in the central business district, West End OTR area in the core of the city, doing a lot of commercial storefronts and apartment units above with some of our partners. So that's been great and we're seeing a lot of those turnover as well. Some of the funding is allocated singularly to the residential side, so the storefronts are there and ready for other investment in the commercial sector, but the housing above and behind it is now being revitalized to bring back the community.

Ann Thompson:

So what about past developments? There's a map on your website, I noticed. Of all the projects that you've done and there's a legend of single family, multifamily, mixed use, commercial hospitality, which ones are you the most proud of and why?

Kai Lewars:

That's a hard question. Thank you for taking a look at the website. I put a lot of work into that. I need to update it. That map is much more populated now, but I would say all those projects are near and dear to me because it really shows impact that we've had in the communities on a business as well as residential housing level people where people live, work and play, including myself and our employees. So all of 'em mean a lot to me, and they mean a lot to the communities that we live in and serve. I'd say the one, if I had to pick one, it's the most recent active one in Lower Price Hill you had mentioned. That's under construction. I used to live adjacent to that property, and I think it's a community that was very much so overlooked and is still overlooked in certain capacities, and I hope that being on a main road of state have that it sheds some light on the beauty of Lower Price Hill and the development that's all been going on that you can't see just driving past,.

Ann Thompson:

In terms of creating more housing here in Cincinnati. What advice would you give other developers or people just getting into the business?

Kai Lewars:

I would say embed yourself in the ecosystem of development. There's many professionals and people that have a huge impact in the local market space. From the financial sector to the construction sector to the community, to the political to the business, there's so much so just embed yourself in community and the rest will come. It takes a while. That was a part of my growth and transition to get to where we're at today, but we really thrive in on supporting communities and that ecosystem of professionals that make it all happen. You might see our name or the K on a building, but there's a lot of people whose hard work goes into making those projects possible.

Ann Thompson:

What do you see in the future of Kaiker Development?

Kai Lewars:

We just want to continue to grow and be a leader in community development in the urban core of Cincinnati primarily. We have a lot of projects up our sleeve, a lot of new funding sources, a lot of new product types. There's a clear demand for housing of high volume, and we plan to be a leader in the local market facilitating that. And I know this interview is more focused on the residential sector, but as you mentioned earlier, I mean we do other development and construction management services. We're wrapping up the Ports new office, that's a class A office in the Atrium Two building with our partner Hunt builders, and we're also leading as construction manager of Elevar of Metros Break Room offices. So those are two large office projects that we're constructing. And what are those doing that's supporting the businesses that support these thriving communities?

Ann Thompson:

So what does a thriving community look like to you?

Kai Lewars:

A thriving community for me is a safe place for all. Oftentimes when I think of the community that I was raised in, it was a melting pot of people. So as an analogy, melting pot of people. It's not just about the color of our skin, but our culture, our careers, our backgrounds, our family. There's so many different aspects of it, but just having that diversity and just that inclusion to grow together as a community and see the things that you and your family may do that I may not do, but hey, let's support it and vice versa. I like that just, and then once again, just having a safe community for all. You should be able to go take a walk and not worry about looking over your shoulder. Then vice versa, kids should be out running and riding their bikes, playing at the playground, things of that sort.

That's what I really love about community, and I know really in development right now, one of the topics at hand is food deserts. You should be able to go to your local store and pick up food, fresh food, things that aren't just sitting on the shelves full of preservatives, but fresh fruit, vegetables, good meats, things of that sort to feed your brain, feed your body, allow you to rise to your best potential. So for me, I think it's really about safety and just like a melting pot of people coming together, supporting one another, helping make their community the best community that they can imagine.

Ann Thompson:

Great. Thank you. Well said. And speaking of food deserts and food insecurity and possible solutions, that's the subject of episode one and season two to drop September 3rd. Remember, if you're interested in digging deeper into our conversation with Kai and want to learn more about Brick by Brick in general, there are plenty of web articles and videos. Go to CT connect.org and think tv.org. We'd like to hear your housing story. Click on one of the big green buttons to share your feedback, and we have more developer interviews coming your way. Hers Lagger Jr. Interviews Jeffrey Mills on August 6th, and Amaco Moore talks to Tim Forbis on August 20th.

That's our show. If you like what you heard, please rate and review our podcast. It helps make it easier to find. We hope you learned something, and if you did, please share it with your friends and family For Hearns La Gere, Jr. And Amaco Moore, I'm Anne Thompson. We'll be back soon with more solutions. Take care.

Our show is produced, hosted an edited by me, Ann Thompson with reporting and story editing from Hernz Laguerre Jr. and Emiko Moore. Our Executive producer of Mark Lammers. Our show consultant is Gloria Skurski. Audio sweetening provided by Mike Schwartz. Zach Kramer runs the lights and cameras. Derrick Smith is our production specialist and Jason Garrison is our production manager. Kellie May heads up our marketing and promotions, along with Mike Shea and Bridgett Dillenburger. Elyssa Stefenson handles the website and Steve Wright is our designer. Bill Dean and Andres Kruza are the engineers for the show and our Chief Content Officer is Colin Scianamblo. Our music is from Universal Production Music. Brick by Brick: Solutions for a Thriving Community is a production of CET and ThinkTV, Southwest Ohio PBS member stations.