After much talking and planning, construction for the new Lansing City Market in Downtown Lansing is underway,
The $1.6 million project is slated to be completed by December of this year. The new 11,400 square foot market will replace the current market, which is larger but not as spatially effective as the new design, according to Eric D. Hart, president and CEO of Lansing Entertainment and Public Facilities (LEPFA).
“It’s more usable than the old facility,” he says. “The old facility has about 13,000 square feet, but the centerpiece is an office and you can’t really use that area.”
The old facility, which has about 40 vendors, will remain open until the new market is finished. The new all-season market will be located closer to the waterfront. Harts thinks the majority of existing vendors will move to the new location and says he’s already getting interest from potential new vendors.
“We’re really concentrating on fresh food, fresh produce and prepared foods,” Hart says, adding that he’d like to see more Lansing residents view the new market as their local grocery store.
“We want there to be so much demand for this that it warrants expansion in the future,” he says.
The city is also building a 400 car parking deck on the back side of the Lansing Center to accommodate parking for the new market and the convention center.
Source: Eric D. Hart, Lansing Entertainment and Public Facilities
Ivy Hughes is the managing editor of Capital Gains and can be reached here.
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