I've been referring back to the old
Northern Michigan Development Thread to look for other things that could be gleaned and brought forward to this new thread. I think the last remaining thing is the many proposals for the troubled 200 E. Lake St. site in downtown Petoskey. This site has a complex history.
The most recent news article I found relates to the land immediately adjacent to and west of the primary development site at
200 E. Lake St.. It is separated by just a fence, which has become a common site for posting political signs and for hosting public protests, because it has high visibility along the heavily-trafficked Bay View Rd. (a.k.a. U.S. Rte. 31).
In August 2020, Petoskey City Council approved a "People's Park" plan, which designates the land as public park space. This was somewhat controversial, because it in effect means that the area must remain accessible to the public for the foreseeable future, and this makes any development plans on the adjacent parcel more complicated, because, to date, most of the proposals that have come and gone take into account the assumption that this parcel could be acquired to support the development. additionally, the City Council's decision also went against concerns raised by many entities - including the Petoskey City Manager, legal counsel, and the City Parks and Recreation Commission.
There is also a designated ROW that runs through this ~ 8,000 SF parcel, which, if ever vacated, would result in that land going to the adjacent property owner. In this case, developer Robert Berg, who purchased 200 E. Lake St. in Fall 2018 from Elias Amash / LCA Associates LLC - another developer with plans that fell through, who had owned the site since late 2013. Amash, in turn, had purchased it from Northwestern Bank after an even earlier development - Petoskey Pointe - failed.
Quote:
City council approves "People's Park" plan, despite objections
William T. Perkins | Petoskey News-Review
August 4, 2020
PETOSKEY — The public space in front of 200 E. Lake St. in downtown Petoskey will become park land — assuming a recent city council decision holds. City council members voted 4-1 Monday in favor of the change, overriding concerns raised by the city manager, civil counsel and the Parks and Recreation Commission. In effect, the decision means the area will stay accessible to the public for the foreseeable future, and can’t easily be offered up for development. But an opinion from Petoskey’s legal counsel, Plunkett and Cooney, suggests the change might not be defensible if challenged in court...
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I can't tell if this actually has gone to court, since the article was published last summer. But the Planning Commission might at least be be gearing up to review its political sign ordinances after lots of complaints were received during the recent election cycle. The newly minted Public Park next to 200 E. Lake St. is at the center of this, again, because of all of the visibility it gets and concern from residents about over-politicization of the city.
Quote:
Petoskey to review political sign ordinance
William T. Perkins | Petoskey News-Review
December 10, 2020
PETOSKEY — Petoskey’s planning commission may soon begin reviewing its political sign regulations after a bout of complaints this election season. Not every city government has regulations pertaining to the display of political signs on private property, but municipalities generally do have some degree of power to set local standards in their zoning ordinances, based on safety and aesthetic factors. In Petoskey, those standards include a 15-day period to remove signs after the election occurred, and size limits depending on the area of the city. But city officials say a wave of complaints this year has prompted a second look at the scope of those ordinances...
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From what I can find so far, there is no real plan or path forward for the current developer, which been faced with many, many challenges. This quote from a
July 2019 article seems to sum up Bob's exasperation with the whole process:
Quote:
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“Many people ask what our next step will be... The answer is none. Maybe when Katie, my daughter, is more experienced she can revisit the project in the next 10 years.”
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But anyway, on to the fun bit. I just thought it would be neat to re-share the few proposals that DetroitSky posted in the old thread, and expand it to include all of the other ones that I could find. As was noted previously, there have been a lot. At least seven or eight, but some blend together. It is hard to track them all, especially as a non-local who has not kept abreast of the many attempts, but I'll do my best. Even though none of these have come to fruition, hopefully someday soon something will happen. There are common themes that run through most of these proposals - mixed use housing / retail with a hotel component - which seems like Petoskey could stand to benefit from. It really is a gaping hole within the downtown urban fabric. So much so that locals even refer to it simply as "the hole".
By the way, this article is immensely in explaining the messy, early years with the initial developer - it traces things back to 2002 -
These are in chronological order, newest to oldest -
"Petoskey Grand" -
the helicopter landing pad is a nice touch. This was shot down by the Planning Commission in July 2019.
Initially Proposed / Presented: March 2019
Developer: Robert Berg / Petoskey Grand, LLC
Architect: Shoreline Architects
Source:
Petoskey News-Review | Courtesy Shoreline Architects
"Petoskey Gateway"
Initially Proposed / Presented: July 2018
Developer: Tom McIntyre / Petoskey Gateway, LLC, with Gibbs Planning Group, Inc. (Urban Planning Consultant) - no land deal ever materialized
Architect: None / Unknown
Source:
Petoskey News-Review | Courtesy Gibbs Planning Group, Inc.
Un-Named(?) 2018 Proposal -
I can find very little info on this one, but there is a Petoskey News-review article that mentions it. Sounds like it was very short-lived / speculative.
Initially Proposed / Presented: 2018
Developer: Unknown
Architect: Non / Unknown
Un-Named(?) 2015 Proposal - Successor to "The New Arlington Place" -
basically identical design to the previous proposal.
Initially Proposed / Presented: May 2015
Developer: John Socks / Socks Construction
Architect: Barry J. Polzin Architects
Source:
Petoskey News-Review | Courtesy Barry J. Polzin Architects
"The New Arlington Place" -
same developer as previous; a more solidified successor of "Sunset Square"?
Initially Proposed / Presented: November 2014
Developer: Elias Amash / LCA Associates LLC
Architect: Barry J. Polzin Architects
Source:
Petoskey News-Review | Courtesy Barry J. Polzin Architects
"Sunset Square"
Initially Proposed / Presented: March(?) 2014
Developer: Elias Amash / LCA Associates LLC
Architect: None / Unknown
I can't find any images for this, and I think it basically evolved into "The New Arlington Place", above.
"Petoskey Pointe - Multiple Iterations" -
Only project to get shovels in the ground. Demolition of existing structures on the block occurred in 2006, preliminary excavations through early 2007 before the development company's financial difficulties started to surface.
Initially Proposed / Presented: Late 2002 through 2005
Developer: Mike Uzelac / Lake Street Petoskey Associates
Designers: Edgewater Design Group, CitySimulation
One Version -
Source:
CitySimulation
Another Version (I think this is the earlier of the two, but not 100% sure)
-
Source:
Edgewater Design Group
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NORTHERN MICHIGAN | General Developments
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4Front Credit Union HQ, under construction ($15.7 million)
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