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CITY OF MUSKEGON
CITY COMMISSION WORKSESSION
Monday, September 12, 2022
5:30 p.m.
City Commission Chambers
933 Terrace Street, Muskegon, MI 49440
MINUTES
2022-78
Present: Mayor Johnson, Vice Mayor German, Commissioners Gorman, St.Clair, Hood,
Ramsey, and Emory
Adelaide Pointe Cooperative Use Agreement
Staff is seeking approval of the updated cooperative use agreement and rescission of
the former development agreement for the Adelaide Pointe development.
A development agreement for the Adelaide Pointe development was approved by the
commission on October 26, 2021. Staff and legal counsel are negotiating with the
developer on revised terms and seek to rescind the former agreement.
Staff is seeking approval of the revised cooperative use agreement as the first step in a
final development agreement for the property. The cooperative use agreement
addresses the various property exchanges, how property will be accessible to the
public, and collaborative pursuit of funding. Staff and legal counsel have worked through
numerous iterations of this agreement with the developer and have reached an
agreement that all can support.
Staff will seek approval of a revised development agreement at a future meeting.
Ryan Leetsma, the developer/owner of the Adelaide Pointe property and project,
provided an overview of the project. Commissioners asked questions of Mr. Leetsma,
there was discussion of public access.
This item will be on the September 13, 2022 regular meeting agenda for consideration.
Public Comment
Public comments were received regarding the proposed Adelaide Point Cooperative
Use Agreement
The Portal
Judy Hayner, Project Manager for the Muskegon City Public Art Initiative, provided an
update to the City Commission regarding the status of the planned ten new significant
high-quality works of art to be installed. Six of the ten are complete. One of the next
proposed pieces to be installed is The Portal. The Portal is a monumentally scaled, 60-
foot diameter ring of Corten steel with LED lights installed inside of the ring, motion-
activated; height from sidewalk to inside top of ring approximately 54-feet. The Portal
represents Muskegon’s renaissance of BIG dreams and aspirations, unity, strength,
unbroken love, and with its incorporation into the urban bike park, FUN!
We are proposing this remarkable collaboration between the City of Muskegon,
Michigan’s Edge Mountain Biking Association, and the MuskegonCity Public Art
Initiative. Funds for both the bike park and the art would be privately raised.
Shaw Walker Furniture Property
Parkland Properties of Michigan, located in Muskegon, has requested to provide an
update on their pursuit of acquiring the former Shaw-Walker Furniture property located
at 930 Washington.
The 702,470 sq ft former Shaw-Walker Furniture property has remained shuttered for
decades despite its rich historical contributions to this community. The developer has
expressed a desire to repurpose and preserve one of the few remaining blights in the
downtown into an adaptive reuse project.
At present, Parkland Properties is currently in the due diligence phase and conducting
environmental research on the site. A potential property closing could occur later this
fall.
Jake Eckholm, Economic Development Director provided an update on the status of the
property ownership. John Rooks, Parkland Properties owner and local developer
addressed the city commission and talked about some of the ideas he has for the
property. Discussion took place regarding this update and it was requested to put an
item on the agenda for a special meeting scheduled for Friday, September 16, 2022 to
consider financial assistance for Shaw Walker Environmental Assessment.
Rezoning of 2043, 2051, 2065, and 2075 Dowd to Form Based Code, Urban Residential
Staff initiated request to rezone the properties of 2043, 2051, 2065 and 2075 Dowd
Street from R-3, High Density Single Family Residential to Form Based Code, Urban
Residential.
Staff is in discussions with a developer that is requesting to build duplexes on the lots.
These properties are located about 600 feet north of the duplexes currently being
constructed at the corner of Hackley & Dowd. Those properties were approved for a
rezoning in 2021. There are also large apartment complexes located just to the
southwest of these parcels. The Planning Commission recommended approval of the
rezoning by a 5-0 vote at their August 11 meeting.
Planning Manager, Mike Franzak, provided an overview of this agenda item and
discussion too place. This item will appear on the September 13, 2022 regular meeting
agenda for consideration.
Public Comment
Public Comments were received.
Adjournment: The City Commission Worksession Meeting adjourned at 8:17 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Ann Marie Meisch, MMC – City Clerk