I sent an email to Bob Tresize asking him a few questions about things going on, her it is:
My email:
" I was wondering if the CIty is actively persuing Capitol Bancorp to
stay downtown, there was article in the LSJ today that said they have
completely filled Business & Trade Center and one full floor of the
Pheonix Building. That encompasses about 64k sq ft, they said they plan
to at least double their number of banks by 2011, to me that points to
one thing, they need a new HQ, and Lansing should be very proactive in
keeping them downtown. I would not be at all suprised to see them put up
a 150k-200k sq ft building and soon, that would be great for downtown.
Also, you stated in previous contacts that there would be a "major
announcement" in December or January, I just wanted to confirm that
Hollister was/was not that announcement. Also, when will we hear about
the Ottawa Power Station proposals and their status?"
His response:
"Yes on Bancorp.
Announcement in January- not Hollister.
Very optimistic on BWL Power Station. Working very hard on this."
I am hoping the "yes" means that the city is already in talks with Capitol Bancorp about a possible new building downtown...
Also, did anyone catch the City Pulse article last week about downtown development in 2006? Specifically it said that "finalizing" plans for the Cooley performing arts center was a priority for 2007. "Finalizing certainly sounds good, maybe we will see an official plan this year, who knows maybe even some construction/demolition.
I saw the article in the City Pulse last week, it was in one of the updates on the front page of the site.
That would be amazing if they could actually still use the building after that fire. I would be left speechless. From what I saw from the road, that building looks like it has no chance of being reused.
I also hope that's what he meant by "yes", I sure hope he doesn't mean, "Yeah, we've thought about pursuing them". Maybe the big plans might have to do with the performing arts center.
I'd have to say I'm starting to lean towards the performing arts center being the "big" announcement, since I heard the words "finalizing plans" used. To me that implies that some already pretty solid plans are in place. The other possibilities are the association project, an Accident Fund expansion, a plan for the Oliver towers site, the MSP headquarters, or something completely new.
Than new sign on the side near michigan looks nice, hopefully Olds Park gets new, more modern signs with its rennovation. Little things like that can really help the overall street scene, and the sign on te Lansing Center could prove to be very valuable in advertising shows, exibitions and whatever else might be going on there.
I am hoping that they keep the sign on the Ottawa Station when redeveloped, even if they rework it to say "Water & Light District" or "Water & Light Building."
I am beginning to realize that the big announcement will be the MSP headquarters. And I sure hope that Cooley is the one that gets control of the Deluxe Inn if anybody were to get control. It would be nice to see some Cooley maintained student dorms.
Comments
My email:
" I was wondering if the CIty is actively persuing Capitol Bancorp to
stay downtown, there was article in the LSJ today that said they have
completely filled Business & Trade Center and one full floor of the
Pheonix Building. That encompasses about 64k sq ft, they said they plan
to at least double their number of banks by 2011, to me that points to
one thing, they need a new HQ, and Lansing should be very proactive in
keeping them downtown. I would not be at all suprised to see them put up
a 150k-200k sq ft building and soon, that would be great for downtown.
Also, you stated in previous contacts that there would be a "major
announcement" in December or January, I just wanted to confirm that
Hollister was/was not that announcement. Also, when will we hear about
the Ottawa Power Station proposals and their status?"
His response:
"Yes on Bancorp.
Announcement in January- not Hollister.
Very optimistic on BWL Power Station. Working very hard on this."
Also, did anyone catch the City Pulse article last week about downtown development in 2006? Specifically it said that "finalizing" plans for the Cooley performing arts center was a priority for 2007. "Finalizing certainly sounds good, maybe we will see an official plan this year, who knows maybe even some construction/demolition.
Also from this weeks City Pulse, an article on the cold storage warehouse: Charred warehouse may still become arts hub
That would be amazing if they could actually still use the building after that fire. I would be left speechless. From what I saw from the road, that building looks like it has no chance of being reused.
I also hope that's what he meant by "yes", I sure hope he doesn't mean, "Yeah, we've thought about pursuing them". Maybe the big plans might have to do with the performing arts center.
Also, in an LSJ article today about the Deluxe Inn it says that Cooley has shown interest in building housing on the site: Deluxe Inn struggles amid efforts to close it