Weekly Meeting – Developing Lancaster

The presentation will include in-depth look at the challenges and development of Stadium Row, the first all new construction apartment project in the City of Lancaster in over 50 years, as well as a look at the future Stockyard Inn redevelopment called The Yards, The Yards is a 200+ unit, transit-oriented, mixed-use development on the northern edge of the City, sharing a boundary with Manheim Township, and is  located on a key corridor and central hub for the County. I will touch on the mixed-income project goal to incorporate some lower-income units into the housing component. I will end with a general discussion of the current challenges facing housing development locally and across the nation from a developer’s perspective.

Benjamin J. Lesher, MCRP/MBA is President & Founder of SDL Devco, LLC, a real estate development firm that focuses on multi-family and urban redevelopment projects in South Central Pennsylvania. Prior to starting SDL Devco, LLC, Ben worked for an affordable housing developer based in Mechanicsburg, PA and a leasing creative land development and reuse firm in Lancaster, PA. In addition, Ben has provided pre-development and downtown redevelopment consulting services to multiple municipalities in North Carolina while working at the Development Finance Initiative. Ben serves on the Board of Chestnut Housing Corporation, which provides affordable rental housing for families experiencing homelessness in Lancaster City. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Gordon College as well as a Master of City and Regional Planning and a Master of Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

His company is named SDL Devco, in honor of his grandparents, parents and sister.  The company recently completed Stadium Row Apartments, the largest new construction apartment building in the City of Lancaster, PA in five decades.  They are now working on Stockyards Apartments.

Rotary Club of Lancaster meets weekly, starting at 12:00 Noon at the Lancaster Farm & Home Center.  If you’d like to join us, please contact Kathy Hainley, Executive Administrator for the club, using our Contact Form.   Lunch is provided at a cost of $16.