Medical Mile/Michigan Street Developments

[torgo]

I think it looks better than the old one too. I do like the roof, and the signage. The rest of the building is very "blah."

I was just wondering the other day when we were gonna see a design of this thing.

[ArsEcclesiae]

GO SPARTANS!!!

Looks great...can't wait to see it up and drive down the new Michigan Street corridor in a few years!

The "bumps" I am not all about, but I am waiting to cast judgement until I see it in person.

[GRDadof3]

I thought the S was for Secchia? I could've sworn I've heard people refer to him as a giant S??? Personally, I've always thought he was a pretty funny guy.

Here's your buddy on WOODTV tonight:

"I think having names on buildings is a legacy...it's something to make sure that people are going to remember.....Fred Meijer with the Meijer Hospital ( )..Devos Hall, Van Andel...Jay Van Andel is gone but we've got the Van Andel Arena....I'm just one of those"

Well as long as it's done to make sure people remember you and what you've done, who can find fault in that?

http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7269409

[wayneoh]

Now that's tasteful!

It actually looks pretty good, they are all white and scaled correctly. In the dark, the letters themselves don't glow, but the are backlit on the edges so they outline is glowing.

Its hard to describe the hospital if you've never seen it, but before the block 'M's were put up, the area where they are now was very very empty.

Here is the best picture I could find. But the 'M's were put up on the 2 darker tan areas that really stick out (literally), oriented so if you were looking straight at the building you would be facing them.

I could take some pictures if people were interested, but ovbiously it is off topic so...

[Veloise]

...

I could take some pictures if people were interested, but obviously it is off topic so...

It's not off-topic. Big Ten Hospitals and Their Signage.

Anyone have a pic of the psychiatric facility in Columbus?

[GRDadof3]

Some answered questions in an article today:

The Secchia Center is intended to be a LEED-certified building with a rainwater collection system and

green roof

. The URS Corporation of Grand Rapids, which will manage the project, has pledged to divert 90 percent of project waste materials away from landfills.

It also will feature bike racks and showers to encourage students to peddle to classes, and special parking privileges for car-poolers.

I thought that's what I had heard. That's cool that it will have a green roof, even though it will be 11 stories in the air.

MSU paid $15.7 million for the site, more than twice what it estimated for land acquisition. The university also purchased nearly 2 acres near the northeast corner of Michigan and College Avenue, likely to be used for additional parking.

"If it's not the most expensive, it's one of the most expensive pieces of real estate in West Michigan," Simon said of the building site.

Anyone know who owned that land to begin with? Was it RDV & Christman? $15.7 Million is a BIG chunk of change for a 1/2 acre parcel considering the TAXABLE VALUE is only $735,000. That would equate to $31.5 Million/acre, which might even be more than what you'd pay in midtown Manhattan.

What's interesting too is that the taxable value on all those parcels in 2005 was $0, then they all jumped up in 2006. Were they owned by Spectrum and tax-exempt at the time? I seem to remember a surface lot where the med school will go now that may have been a city-owned lot (?) Anyone remember?

In doing a little research, $30 Million an acre will fetch you land right in the middle of the Vegas strip, or in space-crunched Manhattan or London.

<a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%...amp;btnG=Search" target="_blank">http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%...amp;btnG=Search</a>

But in downtown Grand Rapids???

[PR-15]

Anyone know who owned that land to begin with? Was it RDV & Christman? $15.7 Million is a BIG chunk of change for a 1/2 acre parcel considering the TAXABLE VALUE is only $735,000. That would equate to $31.5 Million/acre, which might even be more than what you'd pay in midtown Manhattan.

What's interesting too is that the taxable value on all those parcels in 2005 was $0, then they all jumped up in 2006. Were they owned by Spectrum and tax-exempt at the time? I seem to remember a surface lot where the med school will go now that may have been a city-owned lot (?) Anyone remember?

In doing a little research, $30 Million an acre will fetch you land right in the middle of the Vegas strip, or in space-crunched Manhattan or London.

But in downtown Grand Rapids???

Well, GRDad...this is extremely intersting indeed. Would it suprise anyone if SIBSCO (Secchia's real estate dev. company) owned the parcel and sold it to MSU for $15.7 million?

In theory he could have donated $10 million from the proceeds and still made a hefty profit for himself PLUS got naming rights to the building.

I might be mistaken but I believe SIBSCO used to own the Olds Manor building before he sold it to the DeVos family...so he's not unfamiliar to speculating along Michigan Street.

[GRDadof3]

Well, GRDad...this is extremely intersting indeed. Would it suprise anyone if SIBSCO (Secchia's real estate dev. company) owned the parcel and sold it to MSU for $15.7 million?

In theory he could have donated $10 million from the proceeds and still made a hefty profit for himself PLUS got naming rights to the building.

I might be mistaken but I believe SIBSCO used to own the Olds Manor building before he sold it to the DeVos family...so he's not unfamiliar to speculating along Michigan Street.

Hmm, that is interesting. I kind of thought it was strange that Secchia was able to give away $10 Million. Wouldn't someone, under normal circumstances, need to have $50 - $100 Million sitting around to be able to part with $10 Million of it? But if (in theory) part of this land deal was "Hey, MSU, you buy the site from me for $15 Million, and I'll turn around and flip $10 Million back into the project", that would better explain it.

No wonder the school officials keep making statements that "no public dollars are going into this project". Otherwise, they might be accused of fleecing the taxpayers on this deal. $15.7 Million for 1/2 an acre? The city is asking $35 Million for the 16 acres at 201 Market Ave. Obviously 201 Market has a lot of inherent costs, but it's still only $2 Million/acre. The land where the new Commerce ramp is going up was bought for $900,000 I believe, and I think it's about 1/2 an acre.

And yes, SIBSCO (Secchia) did own the Rowe Hotel prior to Devos buying it. SIBSCO also just recently bought a building on Market Ave across from the Market & Fulton site.

http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.ph...st&p=669024

[Veloise]

Some answered questions in an article today:

...

It also will feature bike racks and showers to encourage students to peddle to classes...

...

p-e-d-a-l is the verb (and the pertinent part of the bike).

"Peddle" is what Coney Girl does with her hot dogs.

The bike shop peddles bicycles, and the customers pedal them.

[GaryP]

Anyone know who owned that land to begin with? Was it RDV & Christman? $15.7 Million is a BIG chunk of change for a 1/2 acre parcel considering the TAXABLE VALUE is only $735,000. That would equate to $31.5 Million/acre, which might even be more than what you'd pay in midtown Manhattan.

What's interesting too is that the taxable value on all those parcels in 2005 was $0, then they all jumped up in 2006. Were they owned by Spectrum and tax-exempt at the time? I seem to remember a surface lot where the med school will go now that may have been a city-owned lot (?) Anyone remember?

In doing a little research, $30 Million an acre will fetch you land right in the middle of the Vegas strip, or in space-crunched Manhattan or London.

<a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%...amp;btnG=Search" target="_blank">http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%...amp;btnG=Search</a>

But in downtown Grand Rapids???

Doesn't that price include the parking ramp and structure that have already been built? The total ramp was supposed to have about 2,000 spaces, so if this building includes 1/3 of the parking spaces in the ramp they paid $23,538/space and got the structure and air rights to build for free. Doesn't sound too bad to me, if (big if) the price does include 667 parking spaces...

[PR-15]

Hmm, that is interesting. I kind of thought it was strange that Secchia was able to give away $10 Million. Wouldn't someone, under normal circumstances, need to have $50 - $100 Million sitting around to be able to part with $10 Million of it? But if (in theory) part of this land deal was "Hey, MSU, you buy the site from me for $15 Million, and I'll turn around and flip $10 Million back into the project", that would better explain it.

And yes, SIBSCO (Secchia) did own the Rowe Hotel prior to Devos buying it. SIBSCO also just recently bought a building on Market Ave across from the Market & Fulton site.

http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.ph...st&p=669024

Make no mistake, Secchia can well afford $10 million, his stock alone in UFP is probably worth hundreds of millions.

SIBSCO does this kind of stuff all the time (buying property and selling it to someone who will actually do something with it a short time later). He's sold several buildings to Rockford Development Corp. in Cherry St. Landing, and also sold property to DeVos interests in Cherry St. Landing as well.

He never owns the properites for very long...the timing was/is always very curious to me. He's able to accutely pick up low value properties just prior to something big happening with RDC or RDV...no coincidence he calls all those guys his buddies.

[GRDadof3]

Doesn't that price include the parking ramp and structure that have already been built? The total ramp was supposed to have about 2,000 spaces, so if this building includes 1/3 of the parking spaces in the ramp they paid $23,538/space and got the structure and air rights to build for free. Doesn't sound too bad to me, if (big if) the price does include 667 parking spaces...

I had to go way back in this thread, but apparently there was a memo put out by the MSU board laying out the term of the purchase, and at the time, it looked like it was $15 Million for the site, and a separate number (either $26 Million or $26,900/space) for the 100 - 360 spaces in the parking ramp:

http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.ph...st&p=674364

360 spaces x $26,900 would be just under $10,000,000. Still a lot of holes. Maybe that's why this has taken so long.

[tamias6]

You can see them a little bit better in the largest version. The black is just a shadow being cast by the outcroppings. My guess is they are there to add "depth" to the facade, so it's not just a plain flat surface.

I seem to remember someone here saying they were going to pursue LEED Certification, which is one reason they had the highly-reflective glass before. Apparently it's harder to meet the HVAC requirements for LEED on a very transparent glass facade.

Oooooh! I'm like! Very understated. Sophisticated. It will definitely make a nice bookend to an impressive wall of buildings.

[GRDadof3]

Here's the specific wording on the real estate purchase for MSU and the far West site of the RDV/Christman complex (and the "memo" that WOODTV screwed up in their reporting):

A. Authorization of Real Estate Purchase for Site of West Michigan

Medical School Building

It was recommended that the Board of Trustees authorize the

acquisition of the site of the West Michigan Medical School

Building, specifically the acquisition of Unit 5, Michigan Street

Project Condominium (Kent County Condominium Subdivision Plan

Number 773), City of Grand Rapids, Kent County, Michigan, for a

price not to exceed $15,750,000 and 100 to 360 parking spaces in

the adjacent, lower level Unit 1 of the Michigan Street Project

Condominium at a price not to exceed $26,900 per space, in such a

manner and upon terms and conditions as may be acceptable to

the Vice President for Finance and Operations.

The $15.75 Million and the parking spaces are separate transactions.

<a href="http://trustees.msu.edu/pdf/bot_meeting011807.pdf" target="_blank">http://trustees.msu.edu/pdf/bot_meeting011807.pdf</a>

The Press got it right back in January:

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:vEOCX...;cd=5&gl=us

And it also says that initial funding would come out of MSU's "general fund", in addition to community and private donations.

[tamias6]

I'd like to add some bits I forgot to say in my earlier post. I'm glad the architecture of the building is going to extend all the way down to the Division street level as this will give the building a predominate look. If the architecture of the rest of the parking ramp were maintained onto the portion under the new MSU med school it would not look very good.

[vexom]

Sorry I don't have time to go through the thread to see if this is new information but at msu.edu I saw a news article on the Secchia Center that includes some new renderings - http://newsroom.msu.edu/site/indexer/3227/content.htm

[twoshort]

Anyone know who owned that land to begin with? Was it RDV & Christman?

The last transfer the city shows is from RDV to GR Michigan Street Holdings LLC on 12-31-2005. I believe GR Michigan Street Holdings LLC is Christman. No record (online) prior to that or since. We'll have to wait a while to see if there was someone between GRMSH and MSU (like SIBSCO perhaps).

[aowwt]

You are correct that it is Chistman. They are listed as the owners of a property they are selling at 408 KALAMAZOO PLAZA, Lansing, Mi. That address just happens to be the mailling address for the Michigan Street Development LLC. Just thought I post this.

[joeDowntown]

It would make sense if Secchia has his greasy little paws in this. Word on the street is that if you want anything big done in GR, you have to grease the palms of Secchia or go somewhere else (read: Wayland Casino).

If he is so good at flipping properties, makes you wonder why he bought that clunky little building on Market for 1.75 million (maybe to be close to the "Times Square" of GR)?

Joe

The last transfer the city shows is from RDV to GR Michigan Street Holdings LLC on 12-31-2005. I believe GR Michigan Street Holdings LLC is Christman. No record (online) prior to that or since. We'll have to wait a while to see if there was someone between GRMSH and MSU (like SIBSCO perhaps).

[jwazzz]

Is it just me or are there a few too many trendy design elements going on with this building?

[Rizzo]

It would make sense if Secchia has his greasy little paws in this. Word on the street is that if you want anything big done in GR, you have to grease the palms of Secchia or go somewhere else (read: Wayland Casino).

If he is so good at flipping properties, makes you wonder why he bought that clunky little building on Market for 1.75 million (maybe to be close to the "Times Square" of GR)?

Joe

Light bulb went off after Devos' comment during the JW opening. Say, doesn't he have a friend with a lot somewhere near there? Instead of simply denying anything he goes a step further to expound it as a best piece of undeveloped land in downtown. I wonder what that does to the morale of neighboring property owners.

[PR-15]

Light bulb went off after Devos' comment during the JW opening. Say, doesn't he have a friend with a lot somewhere near there? Instead of simply denying anything he goes a step further to expound it as a best piece of undeveloped land in downtown. I wonder what that does to the morale of neighboring property owners.

You watch...a year or two from now RDV Corp will announce some major riverfront development for the Market surface lot.

Secchia won't do anything with that "clunky little building" by himself. He'll just sell that building/lot for about $5-8 million to Rockford (or someone else) and make a huge profit for just holding the property for a couple of years.

"Buy low, sell high...have friends in high places."

[twoshort]

You watch...a year or two from now RDV Corp will announce some major riverfront development for the Market surface lot.

Secchia won't do anything with that "clunky little building" by himself. He'll just sell that building/lot for about $5-8 million to Rockford (or someone else) and make a huge profit for just holding the property for a couple of years.

"Buy low, sell high...have friends in high places."

I say good for him.

[suydam]

I say good for him.

Agreed. If he does that, makes a few million, and turns around to give money back to GRCC or MSU again, then we all win.

Nothing wrong with land speculation...and you don't always win either.... that's why they call it "speculation."

[GRDadof3]

Agreed. If he does that, makes a few million, and turns around to give money back to GRCC or MSU again, then we all win.

Nothing wrong with land speculation...and you don't always win either.... that's why they call it "speculation."

Yeah, like insider trading. Once in a while you lose money.