“It presents a very different picture of what Grand River (Avenue) looks like if you come from the east, rather then the west,” sociology and global urban studies assistant professor Zachary Neal said. “The first thing people see is vacancy.”

Now, an anchor business in the heart of East Lansing’s City Center I project, Barnes and Noble Booksellers, is slated to move out of its space at 333 E. Grand River Ave. — and city officials, students and others hope new businesses will want to fill in what’s left behind.

Unexpected changes
City Center I, a long-established multi-use project facing Grand River Avenue between M.A.C. Avenue and Charles Street, took a blow when Barnes and Noble made an announcement of its closure in September.

The area currently houses businesses such as CVS Pharmacy, Buffalo Wild Wings Grill and Bar, and Douglas J Salon, as well as the Technology Innovation Center and 38 condominiums, five of which are currently up for sale. It formerly was the location of Jacobson’s Department Store.

Former chair of the city’s Downtown Development Authority and current East Lansing Mayor Vic Loomis and former Planning and Community Development Director Jim van Ravensway spearheaded the City Center I project, which came to fruition in 2002.

East Lansing Community and Economic Development Administrator Lori Mullins said in an email the project stayed true to many of its original goals, including making different housing options available and bringing new people into the downtown area.

“One of the primary goals of the project was to diversify the housing stock in the downtown and bring owner occupants into the downtown,” These residents help to support the downtown businesses, especially through the summers when pedestrian traffic slows.”

City officials are confident the space will be picked up quickly, either in the form of one large business or by splitting the location into several small options.

“That’s a great retail space — it’s already changed from its historic purpose,” East Lansing Planning and Community Development Director Tim Dempsey said. “It needs to move on to its third life.”

Filling a hole
Bill Castanier predicted East Lansing’s downtown Barnes and Noble location would go under more than a year before the company’s official announcement — not because of the location, but because of the current business model.

Castanier, a literary journalist for Lansing City Pulse and co-author of the Michigan book blog Mittenlit, said in a time where e-books are all the rage, stores like Barnes and Noble are having to rethink their strategy, resulting in closures throughout the nation.

“That’s the realities of the business — people are reading in different ways now,” he said.

Representatives of Barnes and Noble declined comment other than a statement previously published in The State News, which cited the termination of the lease as its main reason for closure.

According to Strathmore Development Co. President Scott Chappelle, the primary developer of City Center II, businesses in the project will not see the same fate, as it was more of a business model issue than a location issue.

Chappelle said progress continues to be made on the project, which has fought financing and tax issues in the past.

Two restaurant tenants have signed onto the project and financing is working through the closing process, he said in an email.

“We continue to work with City of East Lansing officials to finalize various documents including the development agreement, operating agreement between the city and MSU for the performing arts theater, and various easements and site improvements for the public infrastructure,” Chappelle said. “City Center II will be an extraordinary venue that will substantially change the west end of the central business district.”

In the past, many East Lansing residents have strongly opposed the project, expressing concerns over city spending of local taxpayer dollars on unpredictable development plans, according to previous articles by The State News.

The project continues to be under evaluation by city officials as Chappelle negotiates with potential tenants and gets financing in order, Dempsey said. He said once necessary information is produced, city officials will reevaluate the plans to see if it’s the right fit for East Lansing.

“We’ll wait and see (and), certainly as we get that information, make the appropriate evaluations and decisions,” Dempsey said. “We’re cautiously optimistic.”

A major concern with the developments on the city’s back burner is the vacancy rate in other developments and properties throughout the downtown area, Neal said. More development could mean more vacancies, especially in areas not directly facing the downtown’s busiest roadway.

“If it’s difficult to keep business on Grand River (Avenue), it will be even more difficult to keep business in the blocks behind it,” Neal said. “If the city engages in new building projects, they could see even more vacant spots.”
To many who live, work and study in East Lansing, though, any development of use to a large number of people is better than an empty storefront or an unattractive building.

Journalism junior Karlee Humphry said something should be done about the building at the corner of Grand River and Abbot, as long as it pertains to the city and its occupants. She said she hopes the location at Barnes and Noble doesn’t remain in the same, empty state.

“It’s a really big space that could be utilized for something, and could be of use,” she said.