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LMich Jun 4, 2018 8:39 AM

You know a place is struggling when the headline for a new jail is spun favorably as job creation. And then to top it all off we get this quote from the sheriff:

Quote:

"We do have a purpose and our purpose is to make sure that those detained in this jail from the judicial branch are housed safely, and that our public is kept safe from those individuals that our system has deemed to be those who are unwilling to comply with our system of laws and rules," said Saginaw County Sheriff William Federspiel.
I don't want to get too political, but a lot of other places are finding ways to downsize their bloated jail and prison populations. Reading that article and the quites, Saginaw officials appear far too excited by this project. Even in the case that's it's needed, I'd expect this to be a more dispassionate affair.

Meh.

Docta_Love Jun 4, 2018 4:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LMich (Post 8209112)
You know a place is struggling when the headline for a new jail is spun favorably as job creation

Too true, ha ha ...

I consider Saginaw to be my true hometown even though I left as just a baby, on fam trips up north we would sometimes stop & stay over with family friends. I kinda loved how houses in our neighborhood had upstairs kitchens despite the logistics of it ...

Saginaw has always been a bit off though as compared to other cities in the state. Saginaw at least until the mid to late 80s was the only manufacturing town in the state that was still hiring so to speak only to see the same pattern that took place in Detroit & Flint occur just a few years later.

A possible reason for this is that just like many other cities in the Great Lakes region it "specialized" in a particular aspect of the auto industry in Saginaw's case the city housed a big piece of GM's auto-supply industry however these companies tended to be more successful in diversification.

The company my dad worked for in Saginaw when my family lived there around the time I was born was doing work for NASA specifically related to the huge fuel mixing machines ... After the challenger disaster however the company ran into problems which was a major reason he made the decision to came back here and work for Ford again.


I've had some articles in the back of my mind for a while on the Tri-Cities but I was up north in a very rustic area when I discovered this thread. This one is a general booster article about downtown developments but it's good to see the same tactics used in Detroit & Flint working their way up I-75 none the less.

Quote:

Cities by the bay: Saginaw, Bay City back from the brink as downtowns rebound

By TOM HENDERSON
Crain's Detroit Business
April 08, 2018

-Saginaw Future, Bay Future have helped drive tens of millions in development in comeback downtowns
-240-acre Great Lakes Tech Park in Saginaw County is offering free shovel-ready land for approved projects
-$12 million Phoenix Building in downtown Bay City one among many historic renovation, new construction projects

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/d...?itok=V_ttVtUL
Uptown Bay City is a 35-acre waterfront development that Bay Future helped shepherd with Bay City-based Shaheen Development over the last four years.

Outside the window of his office in the historic Phoenix Building on Washington Avenue, Bay City's main street, two cranes were busy working on another historic building, the Legacy-Crapo Building across the street, a $12 million project that will convert it into a mixed-use office and residential space, with plans for 26 apartments on the top three floors, two office suites on the second floor and commercial space on the ground floor. Cranes! Once as rare downtown as carrier pigeons.

In downtown Saginaw, Delta College has finished plans for a $12.7 million, 35,000-square-foot building and large green space on what is now a parking lot. It is expected to be open for the fall 2019 semester.

In both cities, vacancy rates are down sharply and no one would risk firing a cannon in the streets. Much of the progress is the result of the work of both Bay Future and its older sister nonprofit, Saginaw Future Inc.
Quote:

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/d...?itok=cH-JAnYk
The CMU College of Medicine hosted a grand opening of its 46,000-square-foot educational facility in Saginaw.

According to Saginaw Future's 2017 annual report, it was involved in 34 economic development projects last year that led to more than 376,000 square feet of planned expansions or new construction. County companies invested more than $177 million in projects and created or retained almost 1,400 jobs.

Other recent projects in the county include The Central Michigan College of Medicine's $25 million, 46,000-square-foot building in Saginaw. Construction began in 2014. Sixty medical students, who began school in 2013 in Mt. Pleasant, completed their third and fourth years in Saginaw and graduated last year.

And The Bancroft and Eddy buildings in the heart of downtown Saginaw are now home to 150 luxury market-rate apartments and first-floor retail and commercial space, a development by Lakeshore Management LLC of Cleveland. An out-of-state firm spending $7 million in downtown Saginaw would have seemed impossible 15 years ago.
Quote:

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/d...?itok=oTJb57hP

Bay Future Inc.

This is Uptown Bay City, a 35-acre waterfront development that Bay Future helped shepherd with Saginaw-based Shaheen Development over the last four years. It also includes boutique retail shops and, atop a building housing Chemical Bank offices, 20 condos that quickly sold out, at prices ranging from $152,000 for a one-bedroom unit to $495,000 for a penthouse suite.

There is no more symbolic and tangible proof of Bay City's resurgence than this, on a former brownfield site that had been home to an iconic manufacturer for 110 years, beginning in 1873, when a group of local businessmen purchased the MacDowell Foundry Co. and began a new business called Industrial Brownhoist.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...k-as-downtowns


Quote:

Ascension funds $50 million in projects at hospitals in Tawas City, Saginaw, Standish

By JAY GREENE
Crain's Detroit Business
May 22, 2018

-Projects at St. Mary's in Saginaw, St. Mary's in Standish and St. Joseph Health System in Tawas City
-Ascension had considered selling the three hospital systems
-Health system has been undergoing massive strategic rethinking as it contemplates future with less inpatient and more outpatient reimbursement

The systems receiving the investment from the nation's largest nonprofit health system are St. Mary's of Michigan in Saginaw, St. Mary's of Michigan in Standish, and St. Joseph Health System in Tawas City.

"During our discernment we reviewed options including partnering with other organizations in the operation of the three health systems as well as transitioning them to different systems," Patricia Maryland, Ascension's executive vice president and president and CEO of Ascension Healthcare, said in a statement.

"However, we determined that retaining and investing in these health systems will best serve them, their associates and physicians, the communities they serve, and our integrated national health ministry."

Maryland was CEO of St. John Providence Health System in Warren before going to the St. Louis corporate office in 2013. Ascension has 15 hospitals in Michigan.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...-in-tawas-city



Quote:

An aerospace startup lifts off

By TOM HENDERSON
Crain's Detroit Business
April 08, 2018

O'Brien and Davis had worked together in the Bay City facility of Thomas Instrument, a Brookshire, Texas-based manufacturer of components for the Department of Defense. Davis, a mechanical engineer from the University of Michigan, was the lead engineer in what is called actuation hardware, the gears and ball joints that move various parts of a plane, including wing flaps that go up and down during flight. O'Brien ran the plant.

O'Brien said that in January 2017, management from Texas visited the Bay City facility. "They said, 'You're going great, we're giving you more work, we're going to hire more people.' On March 17, though, they said, 'We're shutting this plant down, you're gone.'"

Two weeks later, O'Brien and Davis bought three pieces of tooling equipment for well below market value from Thomas, put them into cold storage and looked into whether they should start their own aerospace supply company. They figured they could always sell the equipment if they chickened out.

"I was pissed off," said O'Brien, a journeyman tool maker who also has a business degree. "We said, 'We don't want to do this anymore, working for someone else. We should start our own company.'"
Quote:

In April, they got that first contract Davis joked about, to make three pieces of equipment for the Air Force called jack assemblies for the ammunition loaders of A-10 Thunderbolt jet fighters.
Quote:

So far, so good. In a year, they have landed 15 small military projects worth a total of about $250,000. And at the end of March, they hired their first employee, to help run their machines. (The G and B in the company's name is for their last names. They had a co-founder with a last name starting with a T, but he left the company soon after they launched. "We had already signed so many government forms that that T will be there forever," said Davis.)
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...rtup-lifts-off


Quote:

From Saginaw to the cloud, Dice Corp. grows security business

By TOM HENDERSON
Crain's Detroit Business
April 08, 2018

Dice, the president and CEO, founded the company in 1992 to provide software for alarm companies around the country. He said off-site hosting and storage has been key to steady growth of 20-30 percent annually in recent years. Revenue at the company is about $7 million a year.

Dice Corp. moved to the hosting model in 2013. "Everybody told me that no one would ever host their alarm company in the cloud, but they were wrong," said Dice. He said he has nondisclosure agreements with most of his customers, but provides software or hosting services to more than 1,000 security companies nationwide.

"More than 80 percent of all retailers in the U.S. use our system for some sort of security protection and about 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies," he said, all of that through his alarm-company customers.

In 2014, Dice Corp. spun off IPtelX, a fast-growing telecom provider that is run by his son, Jordan, the president and CEO. It also has revenue of about $7 million, up from just $1.5 million when it was spun off. Dice says that IPtelX realistically could have revenue of $100 million in two years.

Both are under the umbrella of Dice Resource Holdings in the Valley Center Technology Park and employ a total of 54, with projections to be at 70 in a year. Dice said the plan is for Dice Corp. to have the largest combined data center of alarm customers in the world in five years, surpassing ADT.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...urity-business

Rizzo Jun 4, 2018 7:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LMich (Post 8209112)
You know a place is struggling when the headline for a new jail is spun favorably as job creation.
Meh.

Yep. A symptom of the state of things. The economy is roaring in the US and new construction is way up. But the big projects coming out of the region are institutional or healthcare related. We aren’t going to hear news of a new downtown hotel, apartment midrise or office building on a regular basis because there aren’t the jobs in the type of economy to justify it.

I think about when GM had three plants in Saginaw with all three shifts decades ago...the line workers, foremans, plant mangers, process managers, executives and then of course the several dozens of suppliers. You had tons of mid to high paying jobs that justified new construction and all the ancillary services like retail and healthcare. With much of that a fraction of what it was, it’s all about replacing what you have when the money is there.

deja vu Jun 4, 2018 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Docta_Love (Post 8209324)
I've had some articles in the back of my mind for a while on the Tri-Cities but I was up north in a very rustic area when I discovered this thread. This one is a general booster article about downtown developments but it's good to see the same tactics used in Detroit & Flint working their way up I-75 none the less.

Haha. That "Cities by the bay" article is the very same one that I referenced on page one of this thread when rebooting it. I actually had the inspiration to try and dust this thread off after reading that article. Thanks for sharing those other ones though.

I'm not thrilled that the biggest construction project ramping up in Saginaw right now is a new jail. The construction jobs that are 'celebrated' are short-term, and provide only temporary benefits. I don't know enough about the prison situation in the county to comment intelligently on what need there is for a new jail. It sounds like the current one is quite outdated / old. And I know many cities / counties now generate money by essentially renting out their cells to other jurisdictions. Not sure if that is part of the plan here to make the numbers work. That Sheriff's quote was not very eloquent!

Docta_Love Jun 5, 2018 6:15 PM

Haha right you are I skimmed through the first post or two of the reboot but ended up getting sidetracked by the construction pics.

As to a jail being promoted as job creation I understand that infrastructure projects along with a private sector push can help reinvigorate an economy but I do get a laugh out of the jail being singled out as a jobs project as opposed to part of a larger push that has been slowly but steadily improving Downtown Saginaw over the past decade or so.

deja vu Jun 9, 2018 2:04 PM

Groundbreaking ceremony happened last week for the new 3-story Fairfield Inn at 503 E Buttles Street, downtown Midland, near the Dow Diamond and Dow East End Building.

Quote:

Construction starts on Fairfield Inn
Kate Carlson | Midland Daily News
June 01, 2018

Construction of a 77-room Fairfield Inn & Suites hotel started in the last couple weeks in downtown Midland and is expected to be complete mid-April. The 14,066-square-foot hotel site plan from Wolgast Design Group on behalf of Davis Lodging, VII, LLC was approved by the Midland City Council in November. The hotel will be located on what used to be the Dirk Waltz auto dealership at 506 East Buttles St...
I couldn't find any renderings, but if you do an image search of Fairfield Inn & Suites, you get a good sense of their more contemporary / current buildings, which this will likely mirror. The building will front E Ellsworth St, with parking behind.

Site Plan
https://vgrvea.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Source: NBC25 News | Courtesy Midland Planning Commission

Ellsworth place, a 3-story, mixed-use development, and 1st State Bank, a 2-story branch bank building, are also both going up about 3 blocks away. I'm trying to find progress photos of both. It's neat to see this stretch along Buttles and Ellsworth slowly densify. Here's a rendering of Ellsworth Place - at 201, 205 and 211 E. Ellsworth St. - offices and garages on first floor, eight condo apartments above.

https://vwrvea.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Source: Midland Daily News

LMich Jun 11, 2018 8:29 AM

I almost lost my breath seeing that site plan until you told me the parking was in the back. lol

Anyway, I kind of wonder what the height limit is for new commercial buildings in downtown Midland? Everything seems to be limited to two or three stories, it seems, and I wonder if it's by design or if it's just mostly market forces in a small city?

deja vu Jun 12, 2018 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LMich (Post 8216820)
I almost lost my breath seeing that site plan until you told me the parking was in the back. lol

Anyway, I kind of wonder what the height limit is for new commercial buildings in downtown Midland? Everything seems to be limited to two or three stories, it seems, and I wonder if it's by design or if it's just mostly market forces in a small city?

That's a good question. I dug into the zoning ordinance a little bit. Here's what I found:

Zone D (Downtown District) has a maximum height of 76 feet (per Article 26 - Schedule of Regulations). That's the tallest that I see. Zone DNO (Downtown Northside Overlay District) has a 2 story minimum, 76 foot maximum. And if it is zoned PUD (Planned Unit Development-Overlay District) the maximum height determined by that zone may be exceeded, provided certain conditions are met.

My guess is that mostly market forces are driving the height (or lack thereof) right now. While it would be great to see a few projects in the 5 - 6 story range downtown, if they can keep getting positive infill at 2 - 3 stories I'm content.

LMich Jun 12, 2018 1:02 PM

Yeah, I'm not advocating any high-rises or anything, but was just curious why we aren't seeing stuff in the five-story range. Generally, even a a smaller city like Midland, I think you really need to go above two stories in the core downtown area. Otherwise, second-floors are really neighborhood scaled stuff and you're wasting land. The hotel and mixed-use building in that range, just at the lower scale of it.

deja vu Jul 14, 2018 1:42 AM

I'm a little bit behind, but the new Saginaw marketplace opened a few weeks ago in the former Saginaw News building. It looks pretty cool, and I wish it well.

Quote:

Saginaw celebrates grand opening of new $22 million market
Isis Simpson-Mersha | MLive
June 22, 2018

SAGINAW, MI -- The transformation of the former Saginaw News building was officially showed off to the public today, offering a glimpse of the resurgence Saginaw leaders are hoping to bring back downtown. Hundreds of people bustled into the new $22 million SVRC Marketplace, 203 S. Washington Ave. for its grand opening on Friday, June 22...
Grand Opening on June 22 -
https://gntanq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none

https://ddtanq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Source: MLive | Nate Manley

Also some soft-opening photos, from June 20 -
https://f9tanq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none

https://gttanq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Source: MLive | Jacob Hamilton

deja vu Jul 14, 2018 2:30 AM

Some other Saginaw news -

Saginaw continues its push to demolish blighted structures in the city. Since 2006, there has been an estimated 4,000 - 5,000 property demolitions. City officials figure there are 500 - 600 left to go.

Quote:

Saginaw continuing to demolish abandoned homes, as 500 to 600 remain
Terry Camp | ABC12
July 13, 2018

Saginaw continues to eliminate blight by knocking down vacant homes. Despite demolishing thousands of homes and business already, the city could use more funding to knock down hundreds more...The city is currently spending the money from two state grants for the demolitions and crews need to finish that work by August. Stemple said more money is needed to rid Saginaw of its vacant homes once and for all...
The Wickes Building, located at 515 N Washington Ave, will undergo a $2.5 million renovation to upgrade building systems and make repairs.The building is partially vacant and the hope is to use the investment $ to retain current tenants and attract new ones. They asked for a tax exemption / freeze for the next 12 years, which City Council approved on June 18. The article says some exterior work will be done, hopefully it improves the current facade.

Quote:

Saginaw developer going after tax break for $2.5M building renovation
Bob Johnson | MLive
June 15, 2018

SAGINAW, MI -- The Saginaw City Council votes this week on a tax break for a $2.5 million project that will increase commercial activity in a building near downtown Saginaw. The council votes Monday, June 18, on issuing SSP Associates an Obsolete Property Rehabilitation Exemption Certificate for the Wickes Building, located at 515 N. Washington, which currently houses the Saginaw Chamber of Commerce, Saginaw Future and the Conventions and Visitors Bureau...
The building as it looks now -
https://fdqlkq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Source: MLive | Henry Taylor

Ex-Ithacan Jul 14, 2018 5:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LMich (Post 8218002)
Yeah, I'm not advocating any high-rises or anything, but was just curious why we aren't seeing stuff in the five-story range. Generally, even a a smaller city like Midland, I think you really need to go above two stories in the core downtown area. Otherwise, second-floors are really neighborhood scaled stuff and you're wasting land. The hotel and mixed-use building in that range, just at the lower scale of it.

I totally agree. As a downtown starts and continues to thrive, the land becomes more expensive. This is particularly true of cities with boundaries (both geographically ie: rivers, or man made such as height limits or historic districts). For developers to make it worth their while the only way to go is up.

deja vu Jul 20, 2018 10:59 PM

This popped up on MLive today. A new mixed-use development led by North Peak Brewing Co., referred to as Water Street Lofts, may be starting construction this fall in downtown Bay City. :tup:

Quote:

North Peak brewery has even bigger plans for Bay City location
Isis Simpson-Mersha | MLive
July 20, 2018

BAY CITY, MI -- The guys behind North Peak Brewing Co. have even bigger plans for their downtown Bay City location, including new apartments and commercial space, but they're not saying much about it right now. Brownfield plans presented to the city this month and obtained by MLive, however, shed some light on what's in store for the old Atrium restaurant and Stein Haus pub that the craft beer company purchased in 2017...
Here's a street view of the parking lot where the new 3-story infill will be. The two building to the right will also be part of the development. According to the article,

Quote:

A brownfield plan for the site submitted by Ann Arbor-based real estate development company 3Mission -- which is run by two founders of Northern United Brewing Co. -- includes two restaurants and 11 apartment units in and adjacent to the existing buildings at the site. The development, a mix of existing and new construction, will feature three interconnected mixed-use buildings. The two restaurants will share a kitchen and there will be patio dining on Third and Water streets as well as in the rear of the development...
Cornerstone Architects is the designer. They have offices in Grand Rapids and Traverse City, and Traverse City is where North Peak is based.

https://e9qlkq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none

https://fnqlkq.dm.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Source: MLive

DetroitSky Aug 28, 2018 6:18 AM

I was in Saginaw for the first time in about a year last weekend. I kept thinking about that "cities by the bay: Saginaw, Bay City back from the brink as downtowns rebound" article that Crain's put out. Downtown Bay City has been a pleasant area, but downtown Saginaw, as many of you know, has not. I'm not really sure if the author of that article has been to Saginaw lately or not, but it doesn't seem so. The vast majority of downtown is still entirely abandoned or empty lots. In fact, it appeared worse than it did last time I was there. There's been a lot of demolitions replaced with grass lots and many of the ground floor level businesses are gone. It's sad because downtown has a huge amount of potential. I wish I could post here and verify that downtown really is "back from the brink", but I really do not believe it is even anywhere near a turning point.

Regardless, here's a few of the projects I photographed

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1852/...0c9d5585_h.jpg
Delta College Saginaw Center, downtown

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1897/...44db921c_h.jpg
Riverview Brownstones on Hamilton, Old Town

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1845/...a83e69c4_h.jpg
The mixed use building at Riverview Brownstones on Hamilton. Retail on the ground floor and residential above.

https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1895/...a3d33dd8_h.jpg
Saginaw County Adult Detention Center, which broke ground in May in Old Town.

deja vu Aug 31, 2018 5:35 AM

Thanks for the photos that highlight some of the good development happening in Saginaw. I was talking with a few guys that live there today, and they would probably agree with your conclusion that Saginaw has not seen the same degree of resurgence that most other major cities in the state are experiencing. One thing is for sure from your 3rd photo - they just don't do masonry detailing work like they used too!

LMich Aug 31, 2018 9:12 AM

Oh, they do, you just have to pay for. But that's not really masonry you're seeing in that photo, either, if you ask me. There's a big project in downtown East Lansing where you've got individually applied bricks, for instance.

Bad brick veneer drives me crazy...but then again, it's about five times better than the cheap vinyl siding which is typical on extremely value-engineered housing developments.

DetroitSky Sep 3, 2018 9:54 PM

Saginaw officials vote to save 144-year-old mansion

Quote:

Saginaw – The Saginaw City Council has agreed to a development deal that will save a historic 144-year-old mansion from demolition.

The council voted last month to accept the agreement from Ann Arbor Builders, The Saginaw News reported.

The city had initially resolved in 2016 to demolish the property to make room for development in the area, but the decision was overturned following the community’s response.
https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/866...t=401&fit=crop

DetroitSky Sep 24, 2018 9:08 PM

DowDuPont to turn Midland site into industrial park

Quote:

MIDLAND — DowDuPont officials plan to turn the company's Michigan site into a multi-company industrial park.

Company officials on Thursday unveiled the plan for the 2,600-acre Dow Michigan Operations manufacturing complex in Midland.

The chemical giants Dow and DuPont merged last year in an almost $70 billion deal.

The Midland site is home to six companies, including Dow, Dow Corning and Corteva Agriscience, which will split off into three distinct companies next year as part of the merger.
https://crain-platform-cdb-prod.s3.a...endering_i.jpg
Dow Michigan Operations Park visitor entrance rendering. Inspired by the designs of Midland architect Alden B. Dow.

Rizzo Sep 24, 2018 10:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LMich (Post 8299867)
Oh, they do, you just have to pay for. But that's not really masonry you're seeing in that photo, either, if you ask me. There's a big project in downtown East Lansing where you've got individually applied bricks, for instance.

Bad brick veneer drives me crazy...but then again, it's about five times better than the cheap vinyl siding which is typical on extremely value-engineered housing developments.

A lot of the “flat look” of brick work on new buildings is because code allows cavity wall construction. It’s nothing more than cladding, and its capacity for depth and embellishment is limited.

There’s still places like Chicago that encourage heavy load bearing masonry because of rigid code requirements. Contractors are still using old practices of false work to support arches and create elaborate inlays and patterns, but it’s all incidental. I’m surprised I got charged nothing extra from contractors to rebuild corbels and the entablature on my building despite that they could’ve done a boring running bond all the way to the top of the wall. The contractors were just that skilled and fast that fancy masonry work was affordable. It’s likely more difficult in small markets in Michigan were this type of work is limited, meaning less available tradesman.

deja vu Oct 21, 2018 4:52 AM

This is a few weeks old now...

Quote:

New Mixed-Use Building Under Construction At Uptown Bay City
WSGW NewsRadio 790
October 4, 2018

Construction is underway on a new $8.6 million, 3-story, mixed use building in the Uptown Bay City complex. Shaheen Development announced that the 55,000 square foot building, at 101 East Main at the corner of Saginaw Street, is across from the Dow Bay Area Family Y. The building will feature office and retail space on the first floor, with 30 residential apartments on the second and third floors. Leasing for the office and retail space is already underway. The one and two bedroom apartments will start at $975 per month and be available for move-in by the end of 2019...


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