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$5.8 Million in Grants Awarded to Detroit Projects

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The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) awarded brownfield grants and loans to the Detroit Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (DBRA), the Southwest Housing Solutions Corp., the American Indian Health and Family Services, and Detroit’s Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department (BSEED). Brownfields are areas where reuse is complicated by contamination issues. DBRA will use $1 million in EGLE brownfield grants to fix contamination at the former American Motors Corporation headquarters. Southwest Housing Solutions Corp. will use the grant monies to remediate an entire block of contaminated land into a new development that will provide affordable housing. The American Indian Health and Family Services will build a new community health and wellness center in southwest Detroit. The city of Detroit will use the $450,000 it was awarded to transform vacant parcels of land for a residential redevelopment project. BSEED will use its grant to assess contamination, remove an underground storage tank and install a ventilation system if removal of the contamination is impossible.

 

 

 

Ann Arbor Attempts To Smooth Building Process For Developers

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Real Estate developers have complained for years about Ann Arbor’s many requirements and layers of review and approval for building projects. Some have stated that they’ll never do business in the city again because it’s easier and less costly to build new housing in other places. Ann Arbor officials are trying to right that wrong. The City Council voted to shorten the approval process. Projects that meet the city’s zoning requirements will not have to go through council. Instead, they’ll be reviewed and approved by city staff and the Planning Commission. City leaders are discussing more steps to smooth the process as the city tries to attract high-density development along transit corridors.

Switch Expands Former Steelcase Pyramid Site

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The former Steelcase Pyramid site south of Grand Rapids is facing a major expansion. Switch, the Las Vegas-based data storage company, is excavating at the Steelcase Pyramid campus in Gaines Township.  It’s building a 312,000-square-foot building separate from the Pyramid.  The project includes a 1,000-square-foot pump house.  Work on the expansion site began in the spring, with the concrete foundations expected to be poured before the snow flies. The cost of the project, its contractor and completion date have yet to be disclosed. According to Switch’s second-quarter earnings report, it allocated $800,000 toward site preparation.

 

Duggan-Targeted Riverfront Apartment In Foreclosure

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The former River Plaza Apartments, a rundown apartment building between old Whittier Hotel and Owen Park, has fallen into foreclosure. The two-building property went into foreclosure with Columbia, Maryland-based Enterprise Community Loan Fund Inc. The property, one of 100 similar properties, was targeted by Mayor Mike Duggan to rid the city of blighted buildings. It’s unclear if the administration is still seeking demolition and there is no update on the plans. The foreclosure was scheduled at the end of December but was postponed multiple times; it finally took place in late August. The owner, Kathy Makino-Leipsitz, has until February 25, 2023 to redeem the properties.

 

Demolition of Historic Detroit Theater Makes Way for Parking Lot

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The Bagley Development Group has begun demolishing the historic United Artists Theater building in downtown Detroit. They are converting the attached office tower into 148 apartments. The space created by the theater’s demolition will provide parking to residential tenants. Detroit-based construction manager L.S. Brinker has partnered with Lansing-based construction manager Christman Co. to redevelop the office tower. Demolition of the theater is expected to take about 4 to 6 weeks. Homrich Inc. is the contractor on the building.

 

Dearborn Issues Demolition Notice for Village Plaza Tower

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Village Plaza tower, a 12-story office building in Dearborn, is slated for demolition. According to Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud, the city has issued a demolition notice to the property owners after several attempts address the notices of violation. The demolition notice was issued after an August 12 city inspection. The 285,468-square-foot building has evacuated in early 2018 because of safety issues.