Ann Arbor Construction updates

[DetroitMan]

Developer unveils plan for luxury high-rise apartments on Ann Arbor’s old Kline’s lot

A 17-story tower with 281 luxury-branded apartments, 17,250 square feet of ground-floor retail space and 301 private parking spaces for residential tenants is proposed for downtown Ann Arbor’s old Kline’s lot.

And that’s just phase one.

A phase-two high-rise development on the northern portion of the Ashley Street site could bring another 221 apartments, 7,400 square feet of ground-floor retail space and 151 private parking spaces for residential tenants.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...tments-on-ann-arbors-old-klines-lot.html

[DetroitMan]

Despite bankruptcy filing, SouthTown development in Ann Arbor still on with new plans

Revised plans are now approved for the eight-story SouthTown development in Ann Arbor.

They call for a 230,000-square-foot building with 289 apartments, a 41-space parking garage and an energy micro grid on the 1.7-acre block recently cleared at 1601 S. State St. The project incorporates various sustainable design features, including geothermal energy and fuel cell technology.

The city’s Planning Commission voted unanimously Tuesday, April 7, to OK the updated plans presented by developer Heidi Poscher of 4M, who said she’s still committed to making the project happen despite financial challenges. That includes filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January for tens of millions of dollars owed to creditors.

“We’re fully expecting to emerge from that proceeding,” she said. “And once we exit, I don’t think it’ll have any impact at all. We plan on exiting and paying all creditors.”

Probably about $25 million to $30 million, minus contested claims, will be paid, Poscher said.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...n-ann-arbor-still-on-with-new-plans.html

[airforceguy]

High-density hub districts to take priority in sweeping Ann Arbor zoning reforms

Ann Arbor planning commissioners are giving first priority to high-density hub districts as they start a multi-year process to rewrite the city’s zoning. “We do want to go to the most bang for the buck and get something on the map that will give us meaningful density,” said Lisa Disch, City Council’s liaison to the Planning Commission. How to go about implementing the city’s new land-use plan for greater housing density was the focus of a three-hour commission work session Tuesday night, April 14, with the city’s planning staff laying out multiple options.

Commissioners indicated they want to start with areas where there could be more downtown-style clusters of high-rises, and just that first step is expected to take several months of zoning work. New higher-density zoning for transition districts and low-rise residential areas could follow next.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...n-sweeping-ann-arbor-zoning-reforms.html

[DetroitMan]

‘A big, bold project.’ Heated debate surrounds Ann Arbor development deal

The biggest tax-capture deal for private development in Washtenaw County history is one step closer to final approval, but there’s still a spirited debate over it.

“This has taken brownfield to a whole new disgusting level. It is revolting to me that this would come before us,” Washtenaw County Commissioner Yousef Rabhi, D-Ann Arbor, said of the proposed public subsidy for the Arbor South development.

“It’s public money ultimately that’s being used to make private profits and I think that’s fundamentally where I have an issue with this, and how it’s structured and the size of it,” Rabhi said.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...urrounds-ann-arbor-development-deal.html

[airforceguy]

University of Michigan strikes a $60M deal for the bulk of Concordia’s Ann Arbor campus

UM will pay Concordia $60 million to acquire 140 acres of the 187-acre campus, subject to the approval of the UM board of regents, an environmental review and other due diligence. Located at 4090 Geddes Road, the property fronts the Huron River and has direct access to U.S.-23. It is roughly 3.5 miles from UM’s central campus.

The UM board of regents is expected to vote on the purchase at its Thursday meeting.

The deal is expected to close on or before June 30, Paul Corliss, assistant vice president for public affairs and internal communications at UM, said in an email to Crain’s.

“Concordia University Wisconsin and Ann Arbor and University of Michigan are working toward approval of a proposed transaction involving the Geddes Road property in Ann Arbor,” Scott Rudie, assistant vice president for university marketing and communications at Concordia, confirmed in an email to Crain’s. He declined further comment on the sale pending completion of the deal.

UM has not yet made any decisions regarding specific future uses for the property, Corliss said.

It is not being considered for the UM-Los Alamos high-performance computing project because it lacks the specialized infrastructure and high-voltage electrical transmission capacity required for advanced, high-performance computing operations, he said.

The site includes classroom buildings, residence halls, athletic facilities, historic Earhart Manor, other administration buildings and a chapel.

“As the purchase moves forward, the university will evaluate how the site may support long-term educational, research or health-related priorities consistent with its mission. As one of the world’s leading research universities and health systems, UM plans decades in advance to ensure it has the space and capacity needed to support evolving academic, research and community needs,” Corliss said. “Any future plans for the property will follow careful review and due diligence. The university looks forward to working with local officials, neighbors and community stakeholders as this process moves forward.”

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/education/...um=email&utm_campaign=20260518&utm_term=

[DetroitMan]

$30M tax deal for Ann Arbor affordable housing project gets state board’s OK

Nearly $30 million in tax incentives are now approved for an Ann Arbor affordable housing development under a transformational brownfield plan.

The Michigan Strategic Fund Board unanimously OK’d the plan for the 20-story project at 350 S. Fifth Ave. on Tuesday, May 19. “Every Michigander deserves a safe and affordable place to call home,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement, saying the project underscores the state’s commitment to helping more Michiganders find quality affordable housing. “I’m proud of our work to build or rehabilitate more than 90,000 homes in communities across Michigan, more than any administration in history,” she said. “Let’s keep working together to help more people ‘make it’ in Michigan.”

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...ousing-project-gets-state-boards-ok.html

[airforceguy]

616 housing units OK’d for development on Ann Arbor’s north side under new plan

Newly approved plans for the Village of Ann Arbor development on the city’s north side call for 616 housing units across a 78-acre site. That includes 136 for-sale attached townhomes in a series of three-story buildings with rooftop decks and 480 rental apartments with one-, two- and three-bedroom options.

The village-style project off Pontiac Trail and Dhu Varren Road originally received city approval in two phases in 2022 and 2023.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...nn-arbors-north-side-under-new-plan.html

[airforceguy]

Hotly debated Arbor South tax deal worth over $300M gets board’s 6-2 OK

The largest tax-capture deal for private development in Washtenaw County history is now approved at the local level and is headed to the state for final OK.

The Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners voted 6-2 early Thursday morning, May 21, to give its final approval to over $300 million in brownfield tax incentives for the Arbor South development on over 20 acres off State Street and Eisenhower Parkway on Ann Arbor’s south side.

The project aims to bring more than 1,000 new housing units, including over 200 affordable apartments to be owned by the Ann Arbor Housing Commission. Plans also include a hotel, restaurant and retail spaces and plaza space.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...-worth-over-300m-gets-boards-6-2-ok.html

[deja vu]

A few pics of Hub Ann Arbor on State, which topped out at 14 stories a few weeks back. 368 units and 1,216 beds with a rooftop pool deck that overlooks the Big House -






Source: LinkedIn | Nathan Casteel

As A2 continues in its persistence to grow vertically, it's "sister project" - Hub Ann Arbor on Church in the South University district - recently broke ground. The 19-story tower will have 199 units and 772 beds.

[airforceguy]

The same developer behind Arbor South is proposing another major mixed-use project on Ann Arbor's South Side. This project is called Atrium South.

Conceptual plan unveiled for another big development on Ann Arbor’s south side

Exploratory talks are underway for another major mixed-use development on Ann Arbor’s south side. Oxford Companies, which is behind the large Arbor South development off State Street and Eisenhower Parkway, has unveiled a conceptual plan for a similar new development called Atrium South a stone’s throw to the south.

An area plan submitted to the city in April and now under review by the city envisions redeveloping several acres of land where there are several office buildings and parking lots off Victors Way next to Interstate 94 and the Ann Arbor Railroad.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...evelopment-on-ann-arbors-south-side.html

[DetroitMan]

73-home development behind Ann Arbor shopping mall about to break ground

It’s been a decade since Ann Arbor approved a Troy-based developer’s plan for a 73-home subdivision called South Pond Village behind the Arborland shopping mall.

After roughly 10 years of inactivity, a Bloomfield Hills-based developer is taking over the project and plans to break ground soon on what’s now dubbed The Savanna at South Pond. “We believe Ann Arbor remains a strong market for new home development, and Savanna at South Pond is a remarkable and beautiful setting to offer brand-new, high-quality, single-family homes,” said Tim Loughrin, vice president of land acquisition for Robertson Brothers Homes.

City Council’s 7-4 vote in favor of the South Pond project in 2016 came after years of discussion and debate about various ideas for the site on the city’s east side, but the development firm behind it never went forward with the $25 million subdivision plan.

Arborland’s owner then eyed the property for a major expansion of its retail shopping center off Washtenaw Avenue in 2018, but that also never materialized.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...shopping-mall-about-to-break-ground.html

[DetroitMan]

Plan for 10-story Ann Arbor high-rise with possible rooftop bar advances

A plan for a 10-story high-rise on the west side of downtown Ann Arbor where the Last Word bar and Live nightclub stand is headed to City Council.

The city’s Planning Commission voted 7-0 Tuesday night, June 2, to recommend council approval of the proposed mixed-use building at the southwest corner of First and Huron streets.

Plans call for 285 apartments that, unlike many other high-rise apartments downtown, would not be geared toward University of Michigan students, according to the developer.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...-with-possible-rooftop-bar-advances.html

[DetroitMan]

$35M project to revamp old hotel, add Homewood Suites to replace ‘eyesore’ in Ann Arbor

Hotel renovations and a brand new hotel are coming to an Ann Arbor corner.

Construction to revamp Larkspur Landing, 2300 Green Road, into a Hampton Inn by Hilton will begin at the end of July, according to Dante Bacall, partner and principal at the family-owned real estate firm Bacall Companies. The building at 2310 Green Road, which formerly housed an Applebee’s, will be torn down to make way for the six-story hotel Homewood Suites. Bacall, who resides near Bloomfield Hills, hopes for that hotel construction phase to begin in the fourth quarter of 2027.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...tes-to-replace-eyesore-in-ann-arbor.html

[airforceguy]

UM testing American Center for Mobility site as it seeks home for supercomputer center

The University of Michigan and American Center for Mobility have struck a deal to allow UM to conduct environmental testing at the site in Ypsilanti Township being considered for the $1.2 billion Los Alamos National Lab supercomputer project.

Officials at UM and the mobility testing center signed the access agreement earlier this month, and contractors for UM are on site conducting due diligence to see if the site is feasible, UM spokesman Paul Corliss told Crain’s. Since the $1.2 billion UM-Los Alamos project was first reported by Crain’s in December 2024, it has been met with community resistance amid anti-data center sentiment sweeping the state and nation.

The partnership with the prestigious national lab was presented as an economic development magnet and a major win for the state, which agreed to kick in $100 million. It remains at a standstill, however.

The university has yet to sign an incentive agreement for the project with the Michigan Economic Development Corp., a person with knowledge of the project told Crain’s. At the same time, some lawmakers proposed in December a bill that would cancel the Strategic Site Readiness Program grant.

Still, UM indicates that it is moving ahead with the project, though exactly where is to be determined. Its initial choice was a site at 10221 Textile Road near Ford Lake, which it bought for $1.5 million. However, the township pushed back over environmental concerns and threatened to sue UM.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/economy/cdb-um-testing-american-center-for-mobility-20260617/

[airforceguy]

Developer going bigger with apartments next to Whole Foods in Ann Arbor

Plans are still in the works to build new apartments next to the Whole Foods on Ann Arbor’s south side, but the developer is thinking bigger now.

City Council voted 10-0 last October to approve a rezoning and site plan for the development known as The Crescent at 2525 Ann Arbor-Saline Road.

Plans then called for a five-story, 262-unit building with a pool deck, modern gym, business center with meeting space, kitchen and other amenities. Plans showed nearly 300 car parking spaces, including 268 in a garage under the apartments.

https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/202...ts-next-to-whole-foods-in-ann-arbor.html