From her house's rear window, Alice Schehr's view is dominated by the hulking shell of the former Albert Pic Motel.
The structure, which was converted to office use in 1983, closed its doors in 2000 and has sat vacant ever since.
But Schehr said her problem isn't with the two-story eyesore, it's with the development proposed to replace it.
Strathmore Development Company is petitioning the East Lansing Planning Commission to rezone the area to include retail sales.
A revised proposal given to the commission at their Wednesday night meeting includes a one-story, 10,800 sq. ft. retail building featuring a drive-up Starbucks Coffee Company among other tenants. Another 17,800 sq. ft. two-story office building containing a drive-through Fifth-Third Bank and other tenants is also included in the plan.
The property faces three busy roadways - West Saginaw Street, Coolidge Road and West Grand River Avenue - and the residential Cowley Avenue.
"The biggest concern is that the proposal might look great right now, but in ten years, I don't know," Schehr said, adding the plan's all-brick design could have been a key selling point. "The developer wouldn't want to live with that in his backyard."
Schehr was one of more than 250 people to sign a petition presented to the commission at its meeting Wednesday night. About two dozen residents were in attendance to voice concerns about the development.
Kevin McGraw, an attorney representing Strathmore Development, said the company has worked extensively with neighbors to address many of their concerns.
"We held two neighborhood meetings and the sole purpose was to find out their objections and concerns," he said.
A number of conditions, including one that agreed that no 24-hour retail outlet would be introduced, was proposed in response to neighbors' interests.
To curb the traffic problems, the city traffic engineer is currently working to change the one-way section of Coolidge Road between West Saginaw Street and West Grand River Avenue to a two-way street, said Lori VanOmmeren, an East Lansing community development analyst and urban designer.
Chris DeWitt, a Kedzie Street resident, spoke at the meeting in favor of tearing down the motel.
"It's terrible and it needs to be improved," he said. "It will add to our tax base and our schools."
DeWitt has done work for Strathmore in the past.
The company also contracted EPIC-MRA, a local political survey firm, to conduct a citywide survey asking 300 residents to voice their opinions on the development, McGraw said.
The survey, presented at the commission meeting, found that 58 percent of those surveyed were in favor of the development. The figure includes nonpermanent residents, such as students - a group that critics at the meeting argued don't have a vested interest in the city.
One resident torn on the idea of the development is Joe Stephansky, a Cowley Avenue resident, who said he likes the idea of the development itself and would probably use it, but is worried about negative impacts it might have on his neighborhood.
"I've picked up an awful lot of McDonald's and Burger King trash," Stephansky said. "I'm not opposed to the development; I'm just opposed to being used as its driveway."
