Wait, when was the last Board of Zoning Appeals meeting? I didn't know they'd even resubmitted this; you'd said they'd pulled it.
BTW, speaking of the BZA, I noticed that WLNS has fence post up in their front yard. Never checked back on this one, but I do assume they didn't get approval for a razor-wire fence, god willing. lol Still disappointed to see any fence, and I'm hoping it won't be some cheap chain-link piece of sh%t fence.
BZA is the second Thursday of each month so yesterday. They merely asked to postpone their March application so they could add more renderings and supporters. The reduced the height to 67' and there is a condition they will be planting a ton of street/landscape trees.
Interesting. Would love to see the new renderings and site plans. Looking back at the previous packet - there does not appear to be one for the most recent meeting - they were originally putting this at 74 feet, so they shaved 64 feet off. Hopefully, that doesn't affect the usage too much. BTW, whoever is putting these agendas together keep listing the address as being WEST Miller when it's EAST Miller. lol
Great to hear that the powers-that-be aren't going to go the obstructionist route on this one. I believe that a project like this will be a clear net benefit to the city and the southside's business community while being, at the very worst, a net neutral for the surrounding residential areas. Especially given the likely alternative for the site would have been a bit metal pole barn more or less.
Hopefully the city plans on finishing what they started with the sidewalk construction along Miller.
When a site like this is developed, the property owner has to put in sidewalks. And back on page 514 where I posted the rendering, it's shown. And fortunately in the case of East Miller, you also have a full-length paved shoulder/bike lane on each side of the street which connects to Aurelius, which is also has shared facilities along its entire length in town. Very accessible location for this development that's also going to help bring even more business to the nearby Hope Soccer Complex. This is going to be a big deal for kids on the far southside of town.
I mention sidewalks on Miller not necessarily for this sports development (though that lot is lacking sidewalks), but because last year (or the previous year??) the city added built a lot of sidewalk along Miller where there previously was none but they stopped at Scotmar, I assume/am hoping that the city is aware that they have yet to complete the sidewalk from where they stopped to the new neighborhood going up there. It'll be a less than 1000' gap if they don't complete it.
City has a "sidewalk gap closure" program (which also includes paved trails) in addition to its regular repair program for existing sidewalks. If I'm looking at the proposed budget correctly, they are going to budget $100,000 for the next fiscal year. I have no idea how much sidewalks cost per feet or mile or whatever. But the city page on this has said for years they usually budget enough for 3/4 a mile of sidewalk gaps to be closed every year. So the city has the program it does as it has the money for small stretches, but that adding new sidewalks is primarily the responsibility of a property owner.
Maybe @citykid can find out if there is a publicly available map or some kind of paper that explains the schedule, because I've never seen one, but it has set criteria such as whether there are existing pedestrian ways along the corridor (shared pathways, paved shoulders, etc), the projected number of pedestrians that may use the sidewalk, and the cost of adding them on that particular street.
LSJ had a story yesterday concerning the redevelopment of the Sears site at Frandor, and Gillespie is pawning off the delay in redevelopment on FEMA's floodplain mapping not yet being completed.
I laugh a bit at this because it's very unlikely the entire site is taken out of it during the remapping. I guess the news in the article is that we get a timeline of the process, which is nearly at its end. But they should not be letting him getting away with deceiving about why he hasn't started this project. Whole neighborhood has been developed on the other side of the street since he announced this one. lol
I cannot really remember if the Sears Store was flooded even during the big floods. I would think that he could just build on top of a berm like across the street or even build on top of a parking structure like the Red Cedar project was originally planned. Is Pat building something new or just renovating?
It sounds like we're still maybe a year or so away from maps taking effect. One thing I did find promising was a quote from Gillespie saying that he's considering mixed-use-hospitality buildings on part of the site now:
"Some of the other calls coming in are regarding hospitality and other mixed-use buildings that we could put towards the north of the site. We might tear down some of the building to do that."
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BTW, speaking of the BZA, I noticed that WLNS has fence post up in their front yard. Never checked back on this one, but I do assume they didn't get approval for a razor-wire fence, god willing. lol Still disappointed to see any fence, and I'm hoping it won't be some cheap chain-link piece of sh%t fence.
Hopefully the city plans on finishing what they started with the sidewalk construction along Miller.
Maybe @citykid can find out if there is a publicly available map or some kind of paper that explains the schedule, because I've never seen one, but it has set criteria such as whether there are existing pedestrian ways along the corridor (shared pathways, paved shoulders, etc), the projected number of pedestrians that may use the sidewalk, and the cost of adding them on that particular street.
https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/news/local/2025/04/14/former-lansing-sears-store-redevelopment-pat-gillespie/82955052007/?tbref=hp
I laugh a bit at this because it's very unlikely the entire site is taken out of it during the remapping. I guess the news in the article is that we get a timeline of the process, which is nearly at its end. But they should not be letting him getting away with deceiving about why he hasn't started this project. Whole neighborhood has been developed on the other side of the street since he announced this one. lol