cover image of Lansing request for qualifications

View the developer RFQ for Lansing’s site at 1506 N. Grand River.

Working with a large portfolio of vacant and underutilized properties is never easy, yet Ingham County Land Bank is partnering with the City of Lansing to redouble their approach by actively marketing one of their most promising former industrial sites. Located at 1506 North Grand River Avenue, the old RC Cola Bottling Plant occupies a 3.6-acre site along the Grand River. It is directly connected to the popular Lansing River Trail, within easy walking distance to Old Town Lansing, and a stone’s throw away from the historic Turner Mansion. This location is an excellent candidate for mixed-use infill development.

With the help of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), the Land Bank worked with the Michigan Municipal League, the City of Lansing, Lansing Area Economic Partnership (LEAP), and planning consultants from Abonmarche to vision what’s next for the site. The Land Bank sees the redevelopment of this property as a catalyst for the neighborhood just north of Old Town, with an eye to attracting additional investment to the area.

Extensive due diligence has been performed on the site, including a Phase I environmental assessment and geotechnical analysis. After initial structural evaluation revealed that demolition is the best option for the existing building, a team of planners, architects, and engineers worked with the Land Bank, City, and other local stakeholders to vision a site redevelopment which reoriented the site toward the riverfront. The result was an RFQ (Request For Proposals) package that not only contained a market analysis for potential commercial and housing unit demands, but also a cost estimate, potential site plan, and visioning schematics for what a development could look like.

As the Land Bank wants to work with developer(s) to maximize the impact of the development, they are offering this site at a negotiable price, and have also sought to smooth the way with local zoning. The site contains two properties, one zoned A-Residential and the second zoned H-Light Industrial. Through this process, the City of Lansing has assisted in moving this site one step closer to redevelopment by expressing a willingness to work with the selected developer(s) on the site to establish a zoning classification and parking requirements that make sense for a valuable new development and extension of the Old Town Lansing area.