@gbinlansing I live in both Grand Rapids and Lansing at this point in time (apartment in Lansing/house in Grand Rapids). This isn't the spot to get into a debate on why lumping an entire city or region into a singular category is narrow minded, but I will say this... I am a Lansing loyalist and excited to see what the future holds for this city, however, spend an afternoon in downtown Grand Rapids or Ann Arbor, and you'll quickly feel the difference of energy. Am I saying Lansing doesn't have things going for it? Absolutely not. Old town is still making headway, Michigan Ave is making the right steps to live up to it's potential as a downtown corridor and REO is starting to get some legs. However, the biggest problem I see our city having, is that everything is so segmented.
GR and AA have done an excellent job of starting from the center, and building out. Lansing is doing the opposite. Starting on the outside and building back towards the center. Part of that is due to goofy infrastructure and design. I get it can't be perfect, but if you look at most successful re-gentrification movements in a major city, it works because there is momentum. When you try to build momentum without having a common center point, it takes FOREVER. I've have lived in downtown Lansing for the last 10 years, and quite honestly, outside of what Gillespie has contributed, not much has changed. Washington square has less nightlife, events and activity than it did 5 years ago. Why is that?
I think Lansing can take some tips from other areas that are doing things successfully. Does that mean mimicking every move that GR or AA are making? Absolutely not, but there could definitely be more unification on a common cause for Lansing. I think that's the biggest thing this city is missing.
People talk about wanting to see new restaurants, entertainment, community events and growth in Lansing, and then spend their Friday nights at Tequila Cowboy in the Lansing Mall. Seriously?
Just my two cents as someone who wants to see this city do well...
I was attempting a slight bit of humor, towards our neighbors. that being said, some of our neighbors are rather chauvinistic about their communities. They have managed to keep or recreate a center city, so maybe they should be rightly proud. In the case of Ann Arbor the major campuses of the university are in the city center or downtown, and have remained there, right next to the business district. Here the campus was sited outside the city center as it was an agriculture college, the city center historically moved from North Lansing [mid 19th century] to North and South Washington Avenues [late 19th early 20th] so already we broke the development- redevelopment in one place cycle, we moved on to a new center. Then we decided to tear most of our 19th and 20th century city down, further reducing the urban center's history, density and population. So our situation has been very different than our neighbors, and of course we can learn from that difference.
So Lansing companies are trying to find better ways to compete. To start with, Taiym and other CIOs in the region have agreed to stop luring talented employees from one another.
Apple and Google have been sued for their collusion to restrict job transfers and prevent wages from increasing. It's terrible that this is now happening here and that the author of the story provided zero pushback.
The LSJ posted an article about Cooley Law School's decline and its effect on downtown Lansing. Cooley has dropped to about 1/3 of its enrollment peak in 2011. Many of the bars that closed downtown attribute a large chunk of business loss due to the enrollment drop.
The buildings at 513 W Ionia St and 519 W Ionia St total 9,132 square feet. Schmidt's project would call for 4,500 square feet of office/retail space and six residential units on the second floors.
This is great infill, just want Lansing and other downtowns need. I am much happier to give incentives for smaller projects like this. I would actually rather have 10 small projects vs one large project, given the failure rate of making it to market for the big ones.
I have only been back for a short time[2 years] but the rivers are the highest I have seen. It has gone down some, it is really impressive to watch the water rushing through the Moores Park damn. The Grand is a really big river!
I think a lot of the trees in the swamps fell during the wind storm in Feb.. Normally neither the wind storm or it's dramatic results would have happened if the air mass was cold and the ground frozen as it has been during February in Mid- Michigan. This kind of event could be seen as a result of climate change, it is not suppose to be 70 degrees and all the fields thawed in February. Of course it was perhaps just a mild winter.
That being said, the utilities cuts along Mt Hope and other parks have been very radical and they have left a mess of stumps, huge branches and broken shrubbery at many places. The stumps and slabs of tree trunk from huge cottonwood trees just lay in a jumbled mess along the river trail east of S Washington, are the going to clean this up? It does not seem like it.
The Grid, new arcade-bar in Old Town, is opening this Tuesday at 4pm. This will be a destination bar for many people, and will help to continue the growth of Old Town.
I think this place will be a success. I tended bar in a place with a similar set up. It was interesting to see how many people really love to play pinball, and video games. There was also pool and ping-pong tables. People had a great time and and usually drank lightly so they could still play the games. I like that as of now it is just a bar, not a restaurant/bar.
It would really be great if they did something to that building. Of all the buildings built in the "urban renewal" area this one to me is the most disappointing building, and a sign of a lack of vision that finds downtown in it's present state. After years waiting and the tons of money that was put into clearing this block, they ended up building an unremarkable office building. I know, at least they built something, perhaps they can make it a more approachable and attractive.
Comments
@gbinlansing I live in both Grand Rapids and Lansing at this point in time (apartment in Lansing/house in Grand Rapids). This isn't the spot to get into a debate on why lumping an entire city or region into a singular category is narrow minded, but I will say this... I am a Lansing loyalist and excited to see what the future holds for this city, however, spend an afternoon in downtown Grand Rapids or Ann Arbor, and you'll quickly feel the difference of energy. Am I saying Lansing doesn't have things going for it? Absolutely not. Old town is still making headway, Michigan Ave is making the right steps to live up to it's potential as a downtown corridor and REO is starting to get some legs. However, the biggest problem I see our city having, is that everything is so segmented.
GR and AA have done an excellent job of starting from the center, and building out. Lansing is doing the opposite. Starting on the outside and building back towards the center. Part of that is due to goofy infrastructure and design. I get it can't be perfect, but if you look at most successful re-gentrification movements in a major city, it works because there is momentum. When you try to build momentum without having a common center point, it takes FOREVER. I've have lived in downtown Lansing for the last 10 years, and quite honestly, outside of what Gillespie has contributed, not much has changed. Washington square has less nightlife, events and activity than it did 5 years ago. Why is that?
I think Lansing can take some tips from other areas that are doing things successfully. Does that mean mimicking every move that GR or AA are making? Absolutely not, but there could definitely be more unification on a common cause for Lansing. I think that's the biggest thing this city is missing.
People talk about wanting to see new restaurants, entertainment, community events and growth in Lansing, and then spend their Friday nights at Tequila Cowboy in the Lansing Mall. Seriously?
Just my two cents as someone who wants to see this city do well...
I was attempting a slight bit of humor, towards our neighbors. that being said, some of our neighbors are rather chauvinistic about their communities. They have managed to keep or recreate a center city, so maybe they should be rightly proud. In the case of Ann Arbor the major campuses of the university are in the city center or downtown, and have remained there, right next to the business district. Here the campus was sited outside the city center as it was an agriculture college, the city center historically moved from North Lansing [mid 19th century] to North and South Washington Avenues [late 19th early 20th] so already we broke the development- redevelopment in one place cycle, we moved on to a new center. Then we decided to tear most of our 19th and 20th century city down, further reducing the urban center's history, density and population. So our situation has been very different than our neighbors, and of course we can learn from that difference.
This is illegal (from the article above),
Apple and Google have been sued for their collusion to restrict job transfers and prevent wages from increasing. It's terrible that this is now happening here and that the author of the story provided zero pushback.
The LSJ posted an article about Cooley Law School's decline and its effect on downtown Lansing. Cooley has dropped to about 1/3 of its enrollment peak in 2011. Many of the bars that closed downtown attribute a large chunk of business loss due to the enrollment drop.
From the LSJ: Blighted buildings near Capitol could get new life
This is great infill, just want Lansing and other downtowns need. I am much happier to give incentives for smaller projects like this. I would actually rather have 10 small projects vs one large project, given the failure rate of making it to market for the big ones.
Great pictures, thanks for sharing! I don't remember seeing these buildings in person before. I guess I just don't travel down Ionia much.
I have only been back for a short time[2 years] but the rivers are the highest I have seen. It has gone down some, it is really impressive to watch the water rushing through the Moores Park damn. The Grand is a really big river!
I think a lot of the trees in the swamps fell during the wind storm in Feb.. Normally neither the wind storm or it's dramatic results would have happened if the air mass was cold and the ground frozen as it has been during February in Mid- Michigan. This kind of event could be seen as a result of climate change, it is not suppose to be 70 degrees and all the fields thawed in February. Of course it was perhaps just a mild winter.
That being said, the utilities cuts along Mt Hope and other parks have been very radical and they have left a mess of stumps, huge branches and broken shrubbery at many places. The stumps and slabs of tree trunk from huge cottonwood trees just lay in a jumbled mess along the river trail east of S Washington, are the going to clean this up? It does not seem like it.
The Grid, new arcade-bar in Old Town, is opening this Tuesday at 4pm. This will be a destination bar for many people, and will help to continue the growth of Old Town.
http://thegridoldtown.com/
I think this place will be a success. I tended bar in a place with a similar set up. It was interesting to see how many people really love to play pinball, and video games. There was also pool and ping-pong tables. People had a great time and and usually drank lightly so they could still play the games. I like that as of now it is just a bar, not a restaurant/bar.
It would really be great if they did something to that building. Of all the buildings built in the "urban renewal" area this one to me is the most disappointing building, and a sign of a lack of vision that finds downtown in it's present state. After years waiting and the tons of money that was put into clearing this block, they ended up building an unremarkable office building. I know, at least they built something, perhaps they can make it a more approachable and attractive.