Future of new Lansing city hall up in the air

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Plans to move the location of  city hall are currently in flux after City Council rejected Mayor Andy Schor’s choice for a new location March 11.

While Schor and the developer, Boji Group, are regrouping for a second bite at the apple before City Council, another development company has challenged the process by which Boji was awarded the win on a request for proposals.

Granger Group was the only other developer to provide a proposal for relocating City Hall. It was rejected by the Schor administration.

But now the company’s leaders are publicly pushing back on Schor and others — demanding a second look at their original proposal and throwing a second proposal into the mix.

Schor told the company in letter Tuesday he’s not having it.

“This is not a matter up for debate and will be my last communication on this matter,” Schor wrote in the conclusion of his Tuesday letter.

It was the culmination of a series of back-and-forths between the mayor and Granger Group.

Granger Group principal Gary Granger wrote on Monday, “Per Lansing Law, this should back into an RFP process to ensure that the City is receiving the best possible outcome, regardless of the pre-selected recipient, which is line with both local and state law.”

In that letter Granger alleges the city allowed Boji Group to work with city officials to hone their proposal but did not allow Granger Group the same opportunity. He accuses the city’s process of being flawed and illegal, which Schor denied in his Tuesday letter.

The Monday letter also included the Granger Group’s second proposal.

In the company’s original proposal, there were more asks.

A previous proposal would have the city sell the current the city hall to Granger Group for redevelopment, provide the developers first option for improvements to the Lansing Center, provisions for tax breaks for various projects for as much $650 million in development. Under the deal, the city would lease to own the building.

Under the Boji deal, the city would buy the building outright with the Boji Group acting as the developer to renovate the historic building into a functional city hall.

Lansing City Council member Peter Spadafore, who serves as one of four at-large positions on the body, says the Granger Group’s efforts “disingenuous.”

“They had their chance to put together a solid proposal,” he says. “They didn’t win that RFP and now they are crying foul over sour grapes.”

Spadafore was one of four members of Council to vote in favor of the purchase agreement to buy the former Masonic Temple, 217 S. Capital Ave., for $3.65 million. The building is on the historic landmarks list and was built in 1924.

While he was disappointed the proposal did not pass the first vote, he’s confident an approval will come when the deal is presented to the council again in the coming weeks.

But he notes the clock is ticking — and not just on the $40 million state appropriation for a city hall which must be spent by the end of September 2027, or it goes back to the state. A Chicago area developer has been waiting in the wings for 7 years to renovate the current city hall into a hotel and restaurant hub.

“I’m not sure how much longer developers who are interested in the old city hall are going to sit around and wait for us to make that decision,” he says. “We could be passing up on a huge opportunity to save that building [Masonic Temple] and in the process City Hall. I think it’s prudent to take a little time, but I don’t think we should be sitting on this for years.”

First Ward City Councilmember Ryan Kost says he wants to see all of the current proposals and negotiations along with cost estimates thrown out and start the entire process anew.

That would include a fresh cost analysis to bring the current city hall up to functionality, which Spadafore says is likely to be somewhat under $100 million, well above the $40 million available from the state.

Kost notes the current estimates to bring the current building up-to-date is based on a previous analysis from several years ago.

He says the Boji and Granger proposals are both products of an RFP process that was flawed — from city needs and resources, to financing requirements to whether or not the city hall would play home to the district court and jail facility.

“We need to do a new RFP that reflects the project moving forward to make sure that we did and do show full transparency in city government,” he tells 6 News.

With the state appropriation on a clock, Kost says it behooves the city to be certain it has made the best deal while moving forward with the best process and practices.

“My opposition is not on the Boji’s being a developer,” he says. “It’s the process.”

Boji Group and Preservation Lansing will provide public tours of the Masonic Temple on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The tours and conversations will also present visitors with information on their proposal to redevelop the site into a city hall.

The Boji Group offer has not been without its own concerns. An original purchase deal would have seen the city fork over $1 million in “carrying costs” the developer says it amassed while holding the property for the city, and another $350,000 for a permanent “visibility easement” on a parking lot to the north of the building.

After 6 News reported on the situation, the city and Boji Group struck the $1.35 million from the deal.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News.