Corner of Glen Ave., East Ann Street may get housing, offices, retail

A busy corner at the University of Michigan Hospitals will get busier if a developer receives city permission to more than double a proposal for a mixed-use complex approved three years ago.

Joseph Freed and Associates, working with local developer and Dexter resident Mike Conter, proposes to build 10 floors of housing, offices and retail at the corner of Glen Avenue and East Ann Street.

City Planning Commission members have doubted whether parking will be sufficient. They also question whether the building will cast too much shade. They tabled the proposal at a Dec. 21 meeting.

Freed, which is based near Chicago, rebuilt Arborland shopping center several years ago. The company proposes one floor of retail, two floors of offices and six floors of apartments. The 120 residential units would range from 540 to 1,200 square feet but have not been priced.

The building would also include about 138 underground parking spaces.

As configured, the parcel includes a gas station, Leonardo's Pizza, two single-family homes and a parking lot for Angelo's restaurant. Freed would try to relocate the homes, which are in the Old Fourth Ward Historic District, according to a report from the Planning Department. The remaining structures would be demolished.

Jean Carlberg, D-3rd Ward, who serves on both the commission and city council, said she wants to walk the neighborhood, seeing how a tall building would fit into the area west of Glen and East Ann. The city needs more density, she acknowledged, but the building must be appropriate for the area.

In July 2001, the city council approved Glen Ann Place as a five-story, 71,000-square-foot mixed-use building, but as yet, nothing has been built.

Conter, the spokesperson for Freed on the Arborland project, said the proposal for Glen Ann Place has been expanded because he and Freed were able to acquire additional parcels. The city has also indicated it would prefer the building stretch corner-to-corner, said Conter.

The new design includes a higher ratio of parking to residential units, and the neighborhood is pedestrian friendly, which cuts the need for extensive parking, said Conter. Glen Ann Place would also offer the neighborhood better shopping opportunities and the city would get the higher density it desires.

"We're targeting people working downtown and at the medical center who want to walk to work," said Conter.

As for objections about shade, Conter said, the University of Michigan buildings under construction across Glen Avenue as well the old St. Joseph's Hospital nearby are as tall and taller than his proposed structure.

Conter said he's not sure when Glen Ann Place will return to the planning commission. However, if city approvals are obtained, he and his partners would like to break ground in the spring or summer. Commercial businesses would open within 12 to 18 months, with the apartments to follow.

Catherine O'Donnell can be reached at codonnell@annarbornews.com or (734) 994-6831.