Traverse City News
Say Goodbye to Downtown Traverse City’s Notorious “Hole”
Construction began today to turn eyesore at East Front and Park Streets into five-story residential marketplace.
The much-maligned hole next to Horizon Bookstore is about to become what it was meant to be: 101 North Park Street, a 70,000-square foot structure boasting commercial space and condos. The target finish date? May 2010, says developer Thom Darga.
Darga resurrected the project with new financing and a fresh collaboration—the latter with Bill Marsh Sr., area auto dealership mogul and developer of True North Lofts, which will occupy the two floors above Red Ginger restaurant.
While construction of 101 North Park Street gets underway, Darga will make his office in one of the vacant True North Lofts; in return, Darga will make parking available to Marsh’s Lofts’ residents in 101 North Park Street’s forthcoming underground lot.
Insider’s Look: 101 North Park Street
Today the scene at 101 North Park Street is scrap metal, exposed concrete and rebar, and a water-filled elevator shaft at thecenter of a vast dirt pit. But the coming months are going to bring the erection of a five-story brick building by the LEED-accredited Nudell Architects construction team. Expect two floors of retail and office space and as many as 27 custom-designed penthouse suites, ranging in price between $299,000 and $500,000. Six have already been sold. Darga’s lips are sealed on the specific businesses intending to move into the commercial space, but he says there are talks of a market, martini bar and coffee house.
“This process has taken … ahem, a little longer than we thought,” says Darga, who purchased the property last year—after the first owner abandoned it in 2001—but was forced to put the project on hold due to a snag in financing. “After eight years, we’re underway today to replace this eyesore with a building Traverse City will be proud of.”
Insider’s Look: True North Lofts
Three of the four True North Lofts are currently available. All are unfinished in order to accommodate the design directives of their future owners. “Anybody who spends big bucks for a project like that is going to want what they want,” says Marsh. Visible in each floors’ raw loft space now: High ceilings, walls of exposed brick—a hallmark of the historic building’s style—and a line of towering windows on each floor’s north and south walls. The north-facing windows showcase views of West Grand Traverse Bay and overlook the Boardman River and boardwalk (walk-out balconies are planned for each level); the south-facing windows look out over downtown Front Street.
What’s planned for the single unavailable loft? Marsh says Red Ginger intends to expand into the second-story space that overlooks Front Street to host big events and meetings, and—in the busy season—accommodate overflow seating. Pricing will be finalized on the loft spaces next week.