The Lansing City Council recently approved the sale of the Lansing City Market, which gives developers the nod to start investing millions of dollars into Lansing’s riverfront.

According to excerpts from the article:

Bob Trezise, president of the Lansing Economic Development Corp., signed Tuesday the state contract assuring the city $1million to remove contaminants from the Lansing City Market property, which has been used at various times for a foundry, galvanizing plant, filling station and machine shop.

The City of Lansing is seeking a $1 million grant from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for the cleanup of the Lansing City Market site Downtown.

The 3.64-acre site needs to be cleaned up before developer Pat Gillespie can start construction on his $30 million City Market redevelopment.

The new space has plenty of seating and a kitchen/counter area that’s twice the size of the East Lansing location.

The size of the kitchen and nearby access to the state’s 30,000 employees, legislators and lobbyists will allow Jabara to increase his catering business.

Jabara’s also excited about being close to Common Ground and the Downtown festivals, which he expects to boost his business.

The café will also have outdoor seating. Eventually, Jabara would like to add a brew pub.

“The Downtown will develop a lot in the next two years,” Jabara says, adding that he wants to be a part of the City Market’s pending move to the river.

The proposed $24 million City Market project would put the City Market closer to the riverfront and add two six-story, 120,000 square foot office buildings and two residential towers near the Lansing Lugnuts baseball stadium, Oldsmobile Park.

“It’s a pretty good second location in an area that’s growing and that really wants us to be here,” Jabara says.

“It will be a really nice addition to the downtown in terms of landscape and development.”

The building will have raised floors to accommodate new technologies, and will allow the MSP to consolidate three existing locations, providing a more centralized location for state’s top safety team.

“This will allow the State Police to operate a lot more efficiently,” Granger says. “There are also jobs that will be created as a result of the construction.”

The indirect economic impact on Lansing could be double the $45 million investment, Granger says.

Welcome to the new online home of Lansing's Grand Vision.

The Grand Vision is Mayor Virg Bernero’s initiative regarding a global approach to understanding our awesome river resource, the Grand River, and it’s future. We are witnessing the exciting rebirth of the Grand River waterfront throughout downtown Lansing.

There is no question changes are in the wind. City officials now recognize the river as a vital asset to Lansing. Fostering a dialogue between the City, developers, neighborhoods, citizens and local business is essential to the appropriate use and understanding of a shared resource like the Grand River.

The City has reached out to groups throughout the city perhaps better than any time in recent history. Therefore, it is important to continue to develop positive and close working relationships with our officials to insure a voice in the future. The Grand Vision intends to focus the energy and creativity of the entire Lansing community on this future. There are many individuals and groups who "love" the river and their voices need to be heard. This community is designed to be the focal point of discussion and information about the Grand River in this era of increased concern about "green" initiatives, conservation, and livability.

You will find:

• coverage of proposed new developments that impact the riverfront
• exciting ideas and proposals from the next generation of planners
• historical photos and information
• current photos, news stories, and multimedia
• information on relevant local events and activities
• relevant engineering and scientific data
• and much more