A year? Is that how long this usually takes? I realize that these are fairly competitive, but do you think it'd really take them that long given that the MEDC has a meeting every month?
Got to say, as developers they should have been more wise, but I'd probably assumed, too, that the credit was transferable and was attached to the land and not necessarily any one project. In hindsight that does seem a kind of foolish assumption, but I have to be honest and say I didn't realize this.
Maybe the ghost is named Chapelle. They really should do some sort of purification ceremony at that site, burn some sage or something, get rid of the bad karma and start over and build something even better.
Earlier this week, the East Lansing City Council repealed previous actions it took regarding the brownfield plan for the site and approved an amended plan to comply with the state's brownfield laws. The switch shortened the time frame during which the developer, Chicago-based Convexity Properties, could recapture new property taxes generated from the project.
That change, paired with the potential loss of a tax credit the developer said it needed to complete the project, ended the current plans for the site, Pierson said.
What this means is that they'll have to start the process over. And just to drive home that this project isn't dead:
The blighted buildings on Grand River Avenue between the People's Church and Abbot Road are still expected to be demolished around Oct. 7. East Lansing Mayor Mark Meadows said Convexity could still submit and receive approval of a new plan in order to start pulling permits in May.
“They have a significant investment there, and I think they're going to want to develop something to get their money back," Meadows said.
Pierson said the developer has no plans to leave the project and still plans to include a hotel at the site.
“The good news of this long process is that there’s a level of trust between the city and the developer," he said. "We just haven’t built anything yet.”
In order to transfer the approved Michigan Business Tax (MBT) credit from the original
City Center II developer to the current Park District developer, the City needs to rescind termination of Brownfield Plan 11 and approval of Brownfield Plan 26.
The Council must also adopt an Amended Brownfield Plan 11 along with adoption of the Second Addendum to Development Agreement and related exhibits that reference the brownfield plan.
Though, this is all contingent upon Chappelle agreeing to transfer the credit. What he wants I'm still not 100% sure:
Staff is recommending approval of all the actions discussed in this memo provided that the original and current developers reach an agreement to transfer the MBT credit and consent to the Amended Brownfield Plan 11, unless the later action is determined by the MEDC to not be necessary.
All documents can be viewed at the city website here if anyone is interested in digging through exactly what they are trying to do.
Thanks for finding this. Wow it's actually more tied up than I thought. Even though that previous article says demolition is still on track and something will get built, I can still see the current developers announcing that they're selling the properties and just walking away.
I heard on local news that they are going to put a parking lot there! They said to add parking while the new building up the block is being built. This sounds like a bad idea to me, and would seem to indicate there won't be anything built there for some time.
Nah. Convexity is an actual developer. They don't just sit on empty land like some local slumlords do here. I can see a far down-scaled project; maybe something closer to the current size of the building on-site. But they aren't going to let the empty land sit there too long.
Another day, another crash into a downtown building. The long-vacant Citizens Bank Building at this corner (100 Grand) had a truck come into it.
EAST LANSING - A truck rammed into the former Citizens Bank building in downtown East Lansing Wednesday night, causing significant damage to the structure just days before it was due to be demolished.
A westbound truck struck the building near the intersection of Grand River Avenue and Abbot Road shortly before 10 p.m. Wednesday, according to East Lansing Police Lt. Steve Gonzalez. The driver lost control of the truck attempting to turn right onto Abbot, Gonzalez said.
The 28-year-old East Lansing man who was behind the wheel was taken to Sparrow Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Alcohol is believed to be a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation. Police haven't released the identity of the driver.
I hope they don't bill the driver for the damage to the building
On a more serious note, both of these incidents are a further reminder of how dangerous automobiles are. Along with widening sidewalks, we should install bollards at intersections with heavy pedestrian traffic.
Comments
A year? Is that how long this usually takes? I realize that these are fairly competitive, but do you think it'd really take them that long given that the MEDC has a meeting every month?
Got to say, as developers they should have been more wise, but I'd probably assumed, too, that the credit was transferable and was attached to the land and not necessarily any one project. In hindsight that does seem a kind of foolish assumption, but I have to be honest and say I didn't realize this.
Maybe the ghost is named Chapelle. They really should do some sort of purification ceremony at that site, burn some sage or something, get rid of the bad karma and start over and build something even better.
Okay, so now the developers are officially on record saying that this version of the project is dead, but that they'll likely continue with something smaller. Also, it appears that the city had to do some convoluted brownfield recisions and amendments to help the current developer keep them at the site:
What this means is that they'll have to start the process over. And just to drive home that this project isn't dead:
To go more into the complicated legislative wrangling they had to do, here are some city memos from Tuesday's special city council meeting:
Though, this is all contingent upon Chappelle agreeing to transfer the credit. What he wants I'm still not 100% sure:
All documents can be viewed at the city website here if anyone is interested in digging through exactly what they are trying to do.
I heard on local news that they are going to put a parking lot there! They said to add parking while the new building up the block is being built. This sounds like a bad idea to me, and would seem to indicate there won't be anything built there for some time.
Nah. Convexity is an actual developer. They don't just sit on empty land like some local slumlords do here. I can see a far down-scaled project; maybe something closer to the current size of the building on-site. But they aren't going to let the empty land sit there too long.
Another day, another crash into a downtown building. The long-vacant Citizens Bank Building at this corner (100 Grand) had a truck come into it.
I hope they don't bill the driver for the damage to the building
On a more serious note, both of these incidents are a further reminder of how dangerous automobiles are. Along with widening sidewalks, we should install bollards at intersections with heavy pedestrian traffic.
Glad to see this day has come. It also makes it significantly easier to eventually develop the site. Psychologically, this will be a big deal.
15 years. 15 years.