https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/ind...us_is.html


Interesting that we are purchasing land. Pipe dream for me would be an on-campus stadium but this would make no sense with the score board and north end zone renovations at Rynearson. IT would be cool to have a campus students can walk to and people could walk to depot town after a game. Alas this is probably just me having too many cold ones at powells thinking this is a good idea.

(11-13-2018 09:57 AM)fanfrompowellspub Wrote:  https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/ind...us_is.html


Interesting that we are purchasing land. Pipe dream for me would be an on-campus stadium but this would make no sense with the score board and north end zone renovations at Rynearson. IT would be cool to have a campus students can walk to and people could walk to depot town after a game. Alas this is probably just me having too many cold ones at powells thinking this is a good idea.

Yes.

For an on-campus stadium, EMU would probably need to show that it has say 5 - 10K parking spaces within say a half-mile of a new stadium before the city would approve.

We don't take parking and traffic seriously because we don't draw 20 - 25K fans to a game.

IF Rynearson was ever full (say if Sparty came) even then we might not have enough parking spaces at Rynearson.

As posters have indicated, it would be NICE to have the Rynearson lots full, traffic jams, etc. etc. because it would mean 25K have come to see a marque (e.g., MSU) game.

A new stadium would cost north of say 50M.

And remember, we are locating almost all of our sports and offices, and S & C, etc. etc. on West campus. They will be either at the Convo or the new building.

I think EMU is very, very happy to have the Convo, IPF, and new building all together. For football, the coaches are at the Convo. S&C will be in the new builidng. Spring ball will be in the IPF.

I know a lot of fans wish the stadium was on campus, but now we will have as good an INTEGRATED sports complex as one will find in any university.

Just my 2 cents and I have no knowledge of what the U may want to do:

IF it were me, I might buy it and make it parking (easiest to do because of the contamination standards are low for parking, compared to other uses such as housing).

Then take a property which is used NOW for parking (e.g., Ann Street lot) and convert it into some thing LATER with a higher value (residential).

Good Idea Steve! can we make you a regent???

I dont know the size of the parcel hm Would it be big enough parcel for a College of Engineering building?

(11-13-2018 10:45 AM)fanfrompowellspub Wrote:  Good Idea Steve! can we make you a regent???

Thanks for the kind words.

EMU is wise to buy up distressed properties (e.g., contaminated properties) adjacent to campus and at WORST use them for parking.

Also, even though parking lots aren't exactly beautiful, a new parking lot is more visually appealing than a distressed property.

The cost of distressed property isn't high.

One thing EMU could do is build more high quality housing like the Village which would appeal to upper classman and grad students.

(11-13-2018 10:51 AM)emu79 Wrote:  I dont know the size of the parcel hm Would it be big enough parcel for a College of Engineering building?

Probably not you could turn the north lots into a College of engineering video off huron river drive and then the distressed property as parking

I do know a College of Engineering is on the Regents wish list 40 Million estimated price tag

Jones/Goddard is planned to be renovated for the expansion of the engineering programs. See here: https://today.emich.edu/story/story/10849

Quick pivot back to sports, when EMU wins the MACC or goes to the Big Dance, we'll need to be ready for a 10% increase in new admissions with need for more residential, parking, etc.

Yes, I have drinking what FanFrom... has been drinking.

Buy. Land will always be land and that particular parcel has depressed the northeast side of campus for decades.

It is contaminated so I don't know that it can be a residential or classroom building.

(11-13-2018 03:41 PM)Block_E Wrote:  Buy. Land will always be land and that particular parcel has depressed the northeast side of campus for decades.

It is contaminated so I don't know that it can be a residential or classroom building.

Bingo. I was thinking the same thing.

Clear the land, put down (green*) turf, put up what black wrought iron fencing, etc. and make the area look more presentable.

Basically it would be what is commonly called 'streetscaping.'

(here is a definition of streetscaping: Streetscaping (programs to improve streetscape conditions) can include changes to the road cross section, traffic management, sidewalk conditions, landscaping (particularly tree cover), street furniture (utility poles, benches, garbage cans, etc.), building fronts, and materials specifications. It also involves improving signage (AIGA 2005; Muhlhausen 2005).

I think Streetscaping is more from the sidewalks out which the city would have easements and could make changes.

Most of what EMU should do, IMHO, is to buy the land, clear the two large buildings, either put down grass or turn into a parking lot, depending on need for additional parking in that area, and then put up black wrought iron fencing, stones, etc. to blend in with other street fronts along Huron River Dr. (see photo)

* Gray turf would be depressing.

BTW, someone refresh my memory: Where is the new student health center being constructed? Think I saw it going up but forgot where. N. Huron Drive and ?

(11-13-2018 04:50 PM)emu steve Wrote:  BTW, someone refresh my memory: Where is the new student health center being constructed? Think I saw it going up but forgot where. N. Huron Drive and ?

https://www.google.com/amp/s/articles.ml...eph_ih.amp



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BTW, think there is another question we failed to ask:

Is there a need for more parking in that area of campus?

Or are we really talking about acquiring that land, in the short term, really to remove an eyesore by cleaning it up?

EDIT: I posted a photo below which shows the area, buildings and the Ann Street parking lot.

What I see is two UGLY (!!) buildings on an ugly property AND an adjacent FULL Ann Street Parking lot.

Repeat: A FULL Ann Street parking lot. That suggests that there isn't a glut of parking in that area.

And yet another question:

EMU I believe entered into a parking contract with an outside company which would up front EMU monies and manage said parking lots (and collect parking fees).

The question then becomes what if EMU wants to make changes, e.g., remove one lot and use said lot to build an academic or residential building? The company managing the parking lots has a very definite vested interest in that lot.

For example, if EMU wanted (hypothetical) wanted to build something on the Ann Street lot would EMU be obligated to replace those parking spaces lost with comparable parking spaces (e.g. at the property we are discussing in this thread?).

These type of business relationships can be complex and stuff for lawyers. Much more complicated than trying to defense the Army offense.