Green developer Gene Townsend is putting together plans
for a $12 million project on a 5.8 acre piece of land in downtown Lansing. The project will
include developing green space and demolishing old houses on a parcel of land
that is bordered by Butler Boulevard,
Sycamore Street, Ottawa Street and Ionia Street.
According to excerpts from the article:
Gene Townsend unveils his plan for the first major
residential development near the Capitol Complex since the state began the
wholesale demolition of inner-city housing in the 1960s.
At the turn of the 20th century, the neighborhood west of
the State Capitol was so vibrant the local press dubbed it “The Gold
Coast.” A century later, after a period of decline and a partial
steamrolling to make room for largely unrealized state projects, developer Gene
Townsend hopes to breathe new life into the patchwork area with a new complex
of 52 condominiums, mixed-use buildings and communal areas.
The $12 million project will fill a 5.8-acre parcel
bordered by Ionia Street
on the north, Sycamore Street
on the east, Ottawa Street
on the south and Butler Boulevard
on the west. Most of the new housing will fill vacant property, with four of
the surviving residences blended in. The state will sell the parcel as surplus
property to the Lansing Brownfield Redevelopment Authority for $460,000, which
will in turn sell it to Townsend before a Jan. 13 legislative deadline to close
the deal. The authority’s board approved Townsend as the developer on Tuesday
and gave Bob Tresize Jr., president of the Lansing Economic Development Corp.,
the green light to negotiate the deal with the state.
Gene Townsend’s plans for the Ottawa Street parcel include 52 condos in
styles to fit into the neighborhood bordering the Capitol Complex.
Read the entire article here.
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