Title
Resolution to Purchase Property at 219 Chapin and Appropriate $280,000.00 from the Open Space and Parkland Preservation Millage Bond Proceeds (8 Votes Required)
Memorandum
Attached for your review and action is a resolution to approve the purchase of a 0.19-acre property located at 219 Chapin owned by Patrician Homes, LLC.
The house on the property contains 3 rental units, which will continue to be occupied until the leases expire the first week of August 2010. Once the leases expire, the house will be demolished. The City plans to take ownership of the property by the end of 2009, and will have a Management Agreement with the current owner to continue to manage the leases.
The parcel is located immediately adjacent to West Park. The park is located near downtown Ann Arbor, and has several entrance points from the four streets on which it borders. However, the entrances are scattered and can be difficult to locate. The Chapin Street entry into West Park, which is closest to downtown, does not have optimal visibility in to the park. Obtaining this property, as well as removing the existing house and wooden fences, will significantly open the view to and from the park along Chapin, creating safer, more welcoming access.
The addition of the parcel to West Park also complements the broader Master Plan for West Park. The West Park Master Planning effort has been ongoing since June 2008. West Park will be undergoing major improvements in the following year, pending final approval of Federal stimulus funds. Renovations will include the construction of bio-swales; pathways; more efficient parking; seating, set in the hill, for the bandshell; and naturalization of the plantings. The bio-swales will enhance the water quality of the Allen Creek drain, as well as cleanse stormwater from 7th Street and the park itself. Removing the house on the site will also remove a structure from the floodway.
A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment has been completed o...
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