The "Thai Hut" sign hanging at the corner of Grand River Ave. and Abbot Road, pictured on June 6, 2017. The building will be part of the Park District redevelopment project.
Even though the latest version of the Park District Project has been scrapped, East Lansing City Council members still have a positive outlook on the project.
"I am not thrilled obviously, but I’m happy that they will demolish the buildings on October 7 which is what we had been hoped for and been waiting for,” Mayor Mark Meadows said.
Demolition should take about a day and a half, City Manager George Lahanas said.
By Sunday evening the buildings will be completely knocked down, but taking the remains away will take more time, Lahanas said.
Since there is no home MSU football game, that will decrease congestion, but lane closures will still happen, Lahanas said.
“Their personal, I guess, schedule was to demolish this fall and then wait six months before they pulled the permits to begin construction of the project and any of that,” Meadows said. “So there’s plenty of time for us to have a new plan presented to us and approve it so that we’re still within in their construction schedule.”
While it is unfortunate that the plans fell through, Councilmember Susan Woods said she is happy the buildings are coming down.
“What’s exciting is that the buildings will come,” Woods said. “We’re going to work as hard as we can, as hard as we did with the first one to come up with something that viable for both.”
The chances of the lot being left empty is slim, Meadows said.
“I’m pretty certain that anybody who’s invested about $12 million into a piece of property is going to try to develop it," Meadows said.
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