(Bloomberg) -- A district set up by Bridgeport, Connecticut, to transform a waterfront steelworks site off of Interstate 95 into a new residential neighborhood with shops and parks plans to sell more municipal bonds to fund the project.

The Steel Point Infrastructure Improvement District — on behalf of a subsidiary of developer RCI Group — will issue $30 million of additional debt in May, according to an investor presentation disclosed Monday on the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA website. Since the sale of about $50 million in unrated muni bonds in 2021, plans for the first phase of the massive 2.8 million-square-foot development have changed, necessitating extensive site clean up and infrastructure. 

Proceeds of the latest bond offering will cover public improvements and remediation.

The original development plan called for three mid-rise apartment buildings with 370 units and 30,000 square feet of retail. Now, developers are planning a four-story apartment building with 420 units and 10,000 square feet of retail as part of the first phase of a project known as Steelpointe Harbor. Parking plans have also been updated, calling for a large parking structure instead of a surface lot.

Read more: Connecticut Waterfront Project Cleared in 2007 to Sell Munis

Bridgeport, once a thriving industrial center and home to factories producing ammunition, sewing machines and electronics, has tried to develop the district for decades. 

So far, RCI Group has built a 220-slip marina, a 150,000-square-foot store for outdoor retailer Bass Pro Shops and a mixed-use lighthouse building on the site directly. The developer plans to build a hotel and additional apartments in the district. 

The 2021 and 2024 bonds are backed by property taxes generated by new development in the district. The district’s undeveloped property was valued at $79.3 million by commercial real estate services company CBRE Group Inc. in October 2023.

KeyBanc Capital Markets is managing the bond sale, which is expected to price on May 16, the presentation said. The debt issued in 2021 at a 4% coupon and maturing in 2036 traded at about 88 cents on April 17.

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.