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Reviving Life
in a Downtown Community
Saginaw, Michigan
Q
\^_J aginaw, Michigan, has established itself as a leader in the medical
arts community through the redevelopment of its Washington Avenue
Corridor, which is a major medical cluster in mid-Michigan. Following a
30-year decline in industrial jobs and businesses, Saginaw faced the
challenge of finding new industry and business to revive Washington
Avenue, a key corridor in the downtown area.
Michigan towns have a proud heritage of prosperous industry. Once
boasting one of the largest foundries in the world, and supporting a
population of 108,000 residents, Saginaw fell victim to a decades-long
economic decline. The large employers of the past—lumber and
manufacturing industries—gradually abandoned the region, leaving a third
of the city in poverty and a nearly 10 percent unemployment rate.
Dozens of idled and abandoned properties lined the downtown area,
discouraging redevelopment and new business. Frustrated city residents
finally voiced concern and prompted action to improve the city's
economic situation.
With the help of an EPA Brownfields Assessment Pilot awarded in 1998,
the city was able to target properties in the downtown area for
environmental assessments. The city performed assessments on 39
properties, with the hopes of cleaning up and redeveloping them into
prosperous business space. Based on the recent success of Saint Mary's
Medical Center, a regional hospital, in acquiring and redeveloping
properties downtown, the city hoped that additional medical users would
see similar opportunities for expansion and relocation in the downtown
area.
Prior to the EPA Brownfields Assessment Pilot, the city began
demolishing impaired residential buildings in the corridor as an initiative to
assemble smaller parcels to help attract larger development to the area.
The cornerstone of this revitalization effort was the seven-acre former
Genesee Packaging plant, targeted in 2002 for a redevelopment project.
The property sat idle for approximately eight years, discouraging
redevelopment around it, until the city and a developer saw the property
as an opportunity for commercial reuse. The city used the EPA
Brownfields Assessment grant to perform the environmental
assessments on the property.
The former packaging plant was demolished and the property cleaned up,
allowing the developer to investigate potential tenants for the area. At the
same time, Michigan Cardiovascular Institute (MCVI) was searching for
The completed MCVI in Saginaw, Michigan.
JUST THE FACTS:
Having experienced a 3 0-year decline
in industrial jobs and businesses,
Saginaw faced the challenge of finding
new industry and business to revive
Washington Avenue, a key corridor in
the downtown area.
• An EPA Brownfields Assessment
Pilot enabled the city to perform
assessments on 39 downtown
properties, including a former packing
plant that sat idle for eight years.
Assessment and cleanup of the former
packing plant site led to a $ 10 million
redevelopment project that brought a
private medical company and nearly
200 jobs to the once-idle property.
With the subsequent redevelopment of
other downtown brownfields,
Saginaw's Washington Avenue is
emerging as a prominent medical
corridor.
"In the general
downtown area, we have seen
growing interest in the second phase of
this project, driven by tenants that want to
be near the emerging medical cluster...
developers see that the city is willing to work
with them and share the financial risk.
They want to know how this project was
completed, where the money came from, and
how they can be assisted."
—Tim Dempsey,
Former Director of Development,
City of Saginaw
continued
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a new location for their consolidated business. With added incentives, including the location of the
property in a Renaissance Zone, which frees the property owner from all property taxes and the
Michigan single business tax (a modified value-added tax on Michigan businesses), MCVI became the
first new tenant for the property. This $10 million redevelopment project of the former
packaging plant property brought nearly 200 jobs to the 90,000 square-foot-facility.
CONTACTS:
For more infoimotion contact
Michael Gilford
U.S. ERA-REGION 5
(312) 886-7257 orgifford.michaelOepa.gov.
Visit the EPA Brownfields Web site at:
http://www.epa.aov/brownfields/
With the arrival of MCVI, traffic increased in the downtown corridor, and more
development in the medical community was planned. The MCVI building has an
additional 30,000 square feet of commercial space available for lease. Phase
II of the project began with a second building that will be occupied by Bio
Star, an emerging medical biotech venture capital firm. Saint Mary's also is
completing a $15 million expansion of its current building, with plans to
complete an additional $60 million expansion in the next few years.
Washington Avenue is emerging as a prominent medical corridor, helping to
attract more businesses to the area. Tim Dempsey, former Director of
Development for the City of Saginaw explains, "In the general downtown
area, we have seen growing interest in the second phase of this project driven
by tenants that want to be near the emerging medical cluster. Other developers
see that the city is willing to work with them and share the financial risk. They want
to know how this project was completed, where the money came from, and how they
can be assisted."
In 2001, the Downtown Saginaw Farmer's Market moved its location to a former warehouse
manufacturing lot that had been vacant for a number of years. EPA Pilot funds were used to perform an
environmental assessment of the area, determining that the property was ready for reuse. Before long,
the organization felt comfortable building a permanent complex on the property. This new location, just
down the street from the medical community, has helped the farmer's market triple its customer base.
Saginaw's downtown area continues to grow, with new office buildings planned, along with a bakery,
coffee shop, brewery, and new restaurant, just to name a few. Brian Eggers, AKT Peerless, a Michigan
based environmental consulting firm, says, "EPA funds have really helped inspire other investors in the
area. No one was interested in the area five years ago. We would not be where we are now were it not
for the EPA grant."
Many other smaller properties in the area are being combined to continue the momentum of attracting
more private business back to the downtown area. Tim Dempsey credits the speed at which the EPA
funds have been available with encouraging developers in the downtown community. "Once we identify a
project and make a request to use the EPA funds, there is a quick turnaround time. The EPA has been
great with timely responses. Many of these developers might be hesitant to come in and build, but they
know that the city can bring some subsidy to the table early, which gives them an initial comfort level they
need to proceed with the project."
If you would like more information on Saginaw, Michigan's brownfields redevelopment efforts, please
contact Michael Gifford at (312) 886-7257 or gifford.michael@,epa.gov.
Brownfields Success Story
Saginaw Michigan
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA 560-F-06-269
October 2006
www. epa. gov/brownfields/
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