The sale of a city-owned, riverfront property is raising objections from some community members.
Opponents say the city shouldn't sell valuable parkland, while supporters say the potential buyer is helping to revitalize the waterfront.
Last week, the Lansing Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the City Council put the sale on ballots this fall.
But the sale of that site – which is currently leased by a Detroit-based real estate company, Detroit Rising, to operate the Lansing Shuffle – has been historically protested.
Lansing resident Ryan Smith moderates the Politics in Lansing Facebook group.
“Riverfront property is one of those things where you go to in successful cities,” Smith said. “You go to Chicago or to New York or to Washington D.C., and what you find is that’s where your most valuable property and assets are. Having that riverfront property right there next to the convention center, across the street from the ballpark, that is a very important location.”
In 2018, the city began conversations to sell the property, which was then home to the Lansing City Market. Smith and others garnered votes against the sale, and the Park Board tabled the idea.
Mayor Andy Schor said at the time the city wouldn’t sell yet, and they’d come up with other ideas for the riverfront.
The City Market, which opened in its most recent form in 2010, “struggled with vacancy foot traffic” and was subsidized by the city throughout the decade until its closure in 2019.
That’s according to Kris Klein, the president and CEO of the Lansing Economic Development Corporation.
In early 2020, Detroit Rising proposed redeveloping the closed City Market property into what’s now Lansing Shuffle.
The next year, the company and city entered into a lease agreement through 2040 and began renovating the property. Detroit Rising pays $2,000 every month plus interest. In the tenth year of operation, the company would begin paying rent plus 10% of gross income.
The new building opened in January 2023. It hosts space for six restaurants and five shuffleboard courts.
Per the lease, Lansing Shuffle can request the city begin the steps to sell the property – which is where the property stands today.
The property lies within the boundaries of Rotary Park, but the sale does not include the park.
Klein said Lansing Shuffle is able to request the sale because its operations have stabilized. The company has been in the building for at least two years and has proven the concept works.
“They've invested a lot in the property several times. There were a lot of leaseholder improvements that they had to finance put in the property,” Klein said. “It's a lot easier to finance those if you own the property and reinvest into a property.”
The Lansing area is benefiting from the company’s operations, Klein said. It’s helping reactivate the riverfront.
Detroit Rising’s investments came on the heels of Rotary Park opening in 2019.
“It's done a lot for the riverfront,” Klein said. “It’s a challenging property, especially with access and parking. That was some of the struggles over the years, when it was a city market, but they’ve been able to make that arrangement work.”
Klein added that Lansing Shuffle provides public restrooms and drinking fountains along the waterfront. It also hosts community events like themed parties and music.
“They’ve shown they’re a strong community partner,” Klein said.
Smith, the Lansing resident, said that Detroit Rising could do whatever it wants with the property if the city sells it.
“He [the owner] can continue to do the Lansing shuffle,” Smith said. “He could shut it down to do something else. He could sell it to whomever he wanted.”
Smith said the waterfront property is unlikely to go down in value, so it doesn’t make sense for the city to sell it.
The LEDC’s Klein said the city initially leased the property instead of selling it because of all the uncertainties associated with the COVID-19 pandemic happening during the deal. Restaurants and other businesses were limited.
Selling the land also means the city won’t have to spend money maintaining the building, Klein said.
Detroit Rising says buying the property would allow Lansing Shuffle to become financially secure in the long run.
“I don't know that it makes necessarily a lot of sense for Lansing to grant this just because the gentleman wants to change his financing options,” Smith said.
If the City Council decides to move forward with putting the sale on the ballot in August, residents would have to approve the proposal.
Were the people to vote yes, the sale agreement would need to be approved by the City Council. That’s where provisions could be negotiated, too.
