EAST LANSING— Construction signs are up, roads are closed and long-abandoned buildings are no more.
Downtown East Lansingis changing.
“This is really the first time we’ve had such large projects underway simultaneously, especially at the density we’re talking about," said Tim Dempsey, director of East Lansing planning, building and development. "We’re talking about 10 and 12-story projects. It's definitely a first."
Here's a round-up of where four projects stand in downtown East Lansing.
Park District Project
The long-blighted buildings between the People's Church and Abbot Road areno more, but what will fill the now-empty space remains to be seen.
In September,Chicago-based Convexity Propertieskilled a$154 million plan for the site, citing a shortened the time frame during which the developer could recapturenew property taxes generated from the project paired with the potential loss of a tax credit.
The project,approved by the city in April 2017,would have included a 13-story hotel and apartment complex.
The city has looked into plansto redevelop the sitefor 15 years, and the buildings were vacatedabout a decade ago. During that time, demolition of the buildings was repeatedly delayed. Demolition of the blighted buildings within the Park District Planning Area was completed in October.
Convexity hasn't walked away from the site entirely, Dempsey said. He expects to hear more from the developer aboutplans for the site in the next month or two.
“By no means is that a dead project," Dempsey said.
Center City District Project
The$125-millionproject calls for a 12-story apartment building on the 100 block of East Grand River, with a small-scale Target on the first floor.
Plans also include construction of a 10-story building on the site of City Lot 1 behind the apartment building, which will have retail space on the first floor, parking on the next four floors upand a five-story apartment complex for people 55 or older.
Demolition for the projectstarted in November. Construction began earlier this year.
The project will have multiple phases, Dempsey said. The Target should be operational by the spring of 2019. The parking garage should be accessible around the same time, he said.
The entire project should be finished in August 2019, Dempsey said.
The East Lansing City Council unanimously approved the project's site plan, brownfield plan and development agreement in June. The Michigan Strategic Fund Board green-lighted the project's $53 million brownfield plan in September. East Lansing Mayor Mark Meadows andChicago-based Harbor Bay Real Estate Advisorssigned the master development agreement for the project in October.
565 E. Grand River Avenue
The former Taco Bell building at the corner of Grand River Avenue and Bailey Street has been replaced by afive-story apartment building that opened in the fall of 2017.
The building ismanaged byCron Management and has a mix ofone-, two- and three-bedroom units. The project was developed by David Krause, of Stonehouse Village VILLC.
The developer pitched the project in the spring of 2015. The previoussingle-story Taco Bell building— built in 1972— was demolished in September 2016.
Taco Bell was a longtime tenant until it moved across Bailey Street in the mid-2000s. A handful of other restaurants had short stints in the space.
In October, Michigan State University's Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museumsigned a lease for a ground-floor space in the building.The Broad's expansion will include a research center and new display spaces.The site will also includeclassroomand study space. A public gathering area is also part of expansion plans.
The space, called "The Art Lab", will open to the public on Saturday, May 19 at 10 a.m.
The Hub
The East Lansing City Council gavethe go-ahead for astudent-focused 10-story apartment building slatedfor the eastern edge of the city's downtown late last year.
Chicago developer Core Spaces LLC first proposed theproject — called the "The Hub of East Lansing" —in late October. Council members voted 5-0 in favor of the proposal.
The developer broke ground on the project in early March. Construction should wrap next summer and the apartments should open in August, saidEric Grimm, the chief development officer of Core Spaces
The building will sit nearEast Grand River Avenue and Cedar Street andwill have 347 apartmentsranging from studios to three-bedroom units. It willhouse up to 585residents andhave158 parking spaces.
The developer demolished the previousbuildings at 918 and 1010 E Grand River Ave., which werehome to a7-Eleven andGeorgio's GourmetPizzeria. Both businesses willmove intothe new building, Grimm said.
Grimm said the space's close proximity to campus makes it an ideal spot for student-focused development. He said East Lansing's large student population and recent growth made it an appealing place to redevelop.
The sidewalks in front of the building will also become wider as part of the project, giving the space a promenade-like feel, Grimm said.
"It'salways our goal with our mixed use project to bring a spark," he said.
Contact reporter Haley Hansen at (517) 267-1344 or hhansen@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @halehansen.
