Ashwaubenon could be hot spot for Packers house growth

Green Bay Press Gazette

Fans tailgate at a Packers house on Stadium Drive before the Aug. 31, 2017, preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams.

ASHWAUBENON – The neighborhood south of Lambeau field was ground zero for the first Packers party house.

That was 17 years ago. Now Ashwaubenon is fertile ground for the next expansion of that distinctive Lambeau Field housing amenity.

That's in part because the best-located houses on the Green Bay side of Lambeau were scooped up over the last decade. At the same time, a recent state law forced Ashwaubenon to abandon its efforts to restrict short-term rentals to two small areas near the stadium.

While much of the public focus has been on Shadow Lane in Green Bay, a street immediately north of Lombardi Avenue where one house was built at a cost of $2.2 million and another is for sale for $1 million, Packers houses arguably started in September 2005, when 880 Stadium Drive, at the northwest corner of the intersection with South Oneida Street, was purchased for $150,000.

This house at 880 Stadium Drive was one of the first near Lambeau Field to be converted for game day use.

With each home sale over the following 12 years, property values in the area increased, but, as is happening on the Green Bay side, prices now are exploding. A house at Stadium Drive and June Lane, with an unobstructed view of Lambeau Field, sold two months ago for $500,000 and the house next door is for sale at a similar price.

"I think there's going to be a lot more sales over there," said Bill Symes, a Suamico real estate broker who has listed and sold property in the area. "There's going to be a shift toward the Ashwaubenon side, I would expect. I think the prices will be better for sellers."

Stadium Drive consists largely of corporate-owned houses because of the village's efforts to constrain short-term rentals. That might change with a new state law that ends communities' ability to prohibit short-term rentals of seven days or more.

While the village's prohibition one-day or weekend rentals remains in place, village officials expect that property owners will find a way to rent their houses for games using the seven-day window.

That may not immediately happen around Lambeau, where property is becoming too expensive to rent profitably.

Paul Belschner, who owns and rents a house on Shadow Lane in Green Bay, said a half-million dollars might be the tipping point at which houses become too expensive to work as rentals.

"I think the market has surpassed where you can make a return on your investment," Belschner said.

Those prices are likely to be found closer to Lambeau Field, where there is a sight-line to the stadium. Yet, in areas south of Stadium Drive or west of Lambeau, nearer the Green Bay Packers Titletown District, houses could sell for lower prices that would make it profitable to use them for game-day and special event rentals.

It is that kind of use the village was trying to curtail due to a concern that an influx of rentals would change neighborhoods and reduce owner-occupancy.

Houses on Stadium Drive in Ashwaubenon have a good view of Lambeau Field in addition to being adjacent to Packers property. That increases the value of that property. Aug. 29, 2017.

The village has a limited inventory of starter homes, which are necessary to attracting young families to the village and maintaining a strong school system. Many of those starter homes are in the Lambeau Field area, the oldest part of the village.

"We have a limited housing stock that's affordable. That's taking those kind of starter homes off the market," Wachowicz said of Packers houses.

Village Attorney Tony Wachowicz said the village has fielded a number of inquiries since the law changed, but no licenses have been applied for. One of the actions the village took in the wake of the new law was to shift the approval process from conditional use permits to licenses, which streamlined the process but kept most of the same requirements, including health code inspections. Owners also must pay a 5 percent sales tax and 10 percent hotel room tax.

CUP requests required public hearings and village board approval. The board turned down several requests over the past two years but now has little choice if applicants meet requirements.

"I think that's what everyone is feeling at this point; it's inevitable," Wachowicz said.

Village licenses are $500 per year. Landlords must also get a state license, have proof of insurance, meet health codes and have a tax number.

Ashwaubenon is developing up to 500 new residential units, which it hopes will attract empty-nesters, and could free up single-family homes.

During public hearings on the conditional use permits, neighbors often complained that they would not know who their neighbors were from week to week and they were uncomfortable with the houses sitting empty for long periods.

"It does kind of ruin the integrity of the neighborhood, but if you live in the area, you are used to people cutting through lawns, parking on yards," said Joe Moore of Shorewest Realty, who also is a Green Bay alderman.

On the other hand, he said, those houses often are renovated and maintained at high levels.

The Ashwaubenon side of Lambeau Field is attractive for a couple of reasons, including, most importantly, location. Unlike their Shadow Lane peers, the fans in the Stadium Drive/Barberry Lane area don't have to cross a busy street like Lombardi Avenue to get to the stadium.

Several houses on Stadium Drive have for-sale signs and buyers are interested.

"I get calls every home game, never from the area," Moore said.