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Ypsilanti officials and residents hope so MI-HQThe recent acquisition of the former Eastern Michigan University (EMU) Gary Owens College of Business building will provide significant benefits to their community.
MI-HQ, a co-op business on Ann Arbor’s west side, opened in mid-June at 300 W. Michigan Ave. announced the deal to buy the building in Ypsi for $2.6 million. MI-HQ plans to completely renovate the 130,000-square-foot building into a co-working space for STEM companies.
MI-HQ President Mark Smith said the deal will be finalized after meeting with the city’s Historic District Commission and Planning Commission, because the property is not zoned for some of the amenities MI-HQ plans to offer.
MI-HQ President Mark Smith
“There’s a lot of good things going on in Ypilanti, and we want to be a part of it and contribute to it,” Smith says.
Part of that “good stuff” is revitalizing the downtown area, including filling in previously vacant storefronts. Ypsilanti Economic Development Director Joe Meyers When he came on board in 2015, he said, there was about a 40% vacancy rate downtown.
“Now, you might see some empty storefronts, but some are actually leased.” “It’s only got two to lease at the moment. We’re excited to see it grow. Covid has had a big impact but we need to slowly recover and see people like these investing again.” [owners of the] Thompson Block, Bellflower, MI-HQ and many others are super fun.
Downtown anchor
EMU Vice President for Communications Walter Craft said locating EMU’s business college downtown 30 years ago was a strategic move by the university to integrate the college into the city’s central business district. It will be now. Go to the renovated brown hall on the EMU campus.
“When we first put it in town, it made a lot of sense and it’s been a great facility for a long time,” says Craft. But as time passed, it became clear that the students’ desire was to bring the business college back to the main campus.
According to Meyers, the building was never a downtown anchor, and its main entrance was not even visible to passers-by. The building fronted on Michigan Avenue, but the entrances were on both sides of Hamilton and Adams.
EMU Vice President of Communications Walter Craft.
“It was like a fortress and everything was focused on the inner courtyard, so it didn’t become as prominent a downtown anchor as we wanted,” Meyers says. “Now, with MI-HQ’s plans to open to the street, we’re excited to be the downtown anchor tenant we’ve always wanted.”
The renovation will include the creation or renovation of medical offices, research and development wet labs, a 160-seat auditorium for tenants and public services, a food truck pad, cafe, gym and public courtyard.
According to Smith, the building has already been expanded in a way that makes sense for wet labs and other services the company has planned.
“The parts are just the right size to convert without a lot of heavy lifting,” he says.
The redevelopment’s conceptual plan would create a “real front door” on Michigan Avenue, Meyers said.
“It will have direct steps to Michigan Street and outdoor seating, which will show that they are part of downtown,” Meyers said. “They really make it a wonderful downtown property.”
A catalyst for growth
In addition to being an anchor, MI-HQ and the community hope MI-HQ will spur further growth. The building will open in the first quarter of 2023 and will create around 300 jobs.
Downtown Ypilanti has a “strong nighttime presence,” Meyers said, but businesses could use more foot traffic during the day.
“I really hope so [MI-HQ employees] Ypsilanti Mayor Lois Richardson said she supports day labor downtown. Support for local businesses is good in the evenings, she says, but still at lunchtime, downtown restaurants like Bobcat Bonnie’s are very handy for serving lunch.
“With Haab [restaurant] It’s good to get foot traffic downtown by closing and maybe see Bonnie and others open earlier in the day,” Richardson says. 
Ypsilanti Mayor Lois Richardson.
The deal puts the building on the city’s tax rolls for the first time. Meyers says the property was on the tax rolls before the college was built there. But for the past 30 years it has been tax-free university property.
“All eligible taxes are available to the city for the first time,” Richardson said. “It’s estimated to be over a million dollars over the next 10 years, which is fantastic for the city.”
The building is in a federal government designation area. Zone of opportunity. This economic development tool encourages businesses to invest in economically distressed areas of the U.S. It promotes local growth. Companies will be rewarded with tax benefits including investment in eligible venture funds and tax deferrals from assets in the zone.
Smith said MI-HQ received a lot of interest in the new location before the deal was officially finalized.
“We’re getting a lot of calls from companies that want to locate there, because they like the building, the location and being in an opportunity zone,” Smith said. “We’re not ready yet, but we hope to announce our anchor tenants soon. We believe that will create a new buzz and hopefully help further growth in the area.”
More information about MI-HQ is available. over here.
Sarah Rigg is a freelance writer and editor and project manager in Ypilanti Township Ypsilanti on the ground. She joined. Focus As of early 2017, he is a news writer and occasional contributor to others. Media Group Edition. Publications. You can find her on sarahrigg1@gmail.com.
All photos by Doug Coombe.
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