Cherryland Center Owners Work Toward Updated Mall Plan as New Businesses Come Online

Thanks to a boom in new growth, the three major owners that make up the Cherryland Center are working toward an updated mall plan that will guide parking, signage, stormwater management, and cross-access drives as the site continues to be developed. Garfield Township planning commissioners could approve the comprehensive development plan at their December 11 meeting – a welcome step to Two Brothers Dog Park Cafe and Taphouse, which has been waiting to start construction at the Cherryland Center but has had its township approval tie-barred to the mall plan.

Township planning commissioners reviewed several Cherryland Center-related topics at their meeting this month, including the mall comprehensive plan. As numerous uses have come online in recent years at the Cherryland Center – including the CLEAR Center (former Kmart) featuring the Traverse City Curling Club and Traverse City Philharmonic, K1 Speed, multiple drive-thru coffee shops, hair salon TC Man Cave, restaurant Taquiera Las Lagunas, and a theater space for Mashup Rock & Roll Musical – township officials have requested that mall owners modernize their reciprocal easement agreement to guide any further redevelopment of the property in a cohesive way.

“What we’re trying to do is create a baseline for current conditions on the site so that as different proposals are proposed on that site, there’s a way to evaluate them,” explained Township Planning Director John Sych. Such a plan will ensure there is “smooth and coordinated development” of the Cherryland Center among its three owners, with parking, access drives, and other infrastructure clearly delineated as more businesses come online, Sych said. Those owners include Traverse City Curling Club, Traverse Entertainment Group LLC (K1 Speed), and Cherryland Center LLC (V. Kumar Vemulapalli).

Getting all those parties on the same page to update a legal agreement hasn’t been the easiest task, some mall representatives told planning commissioners. Numerous mall representatives either didn’t respond or declined to officially comment to The Ticker, though some privately questioned whether the township can legally force them to update a private-party agreement. Sych acknowledged the agreement “does not involve the township,” but pointed to ordinance rules that require private easement or maintenance agreements in certain situations, such as guaranteeing safe access to properties. The existing Cherryland Center agreement dates back to 1983 and needs to be updated to ensure the whole site flows cohesively as it’s built out, Sych said – especially if more outlot buildings or infill developments come online.

Mall representatives indicated they could potentially be ready to present an updated agreement for approval at the planning commission’s December 11 meeting. Two Brothers Dog Park Cafe and Taphouse – which is proposed to go into the Cherryland Center in the back of the former Younkers building – is also expected to be on the agenda that night. The planned “member-driven establishment” will offer a “safe and engaging space for dogs and their parents,” with indoor and outdoor off-leash areas, doggy daycare/training/grooming services, local beer/wine/cider/mead, coffee drinks and food, live events and activities, and more. The outdoor yard will extend into the parking lot area (pictured), expanding the building’s footprint and requiring some outdoor infrastructure and reconstruction work.

Because of that work, Garfield Township has held off approving Two Brothers Dog Park Cafe and Taphouse until the mall comprehensive development plan is complete. Sych noted that planning commissioners agreed last summer that “any infill development on the site or expansion of the footprint of the existing building” would require the updated mall plan to be in place first. “(Infill) is going to start impacting the other parts of that site,” he said. “We had to draw a line at some point.”

That line has been a source of frustration for Two Brothers owner Eric Engel, who pointed out that numerous other businesses at the Cherryland Center – including a new 24/7 Golf center approved this month – have been allowed to proceed while his has been the sole project tie-barred to the comprehensive development plan. Sych pointed out 24/7 Golf will be within the mall’s existing footprint (in the CLEAR Center), but Engel said Starbucks and other outlot projects also previously received a green light without having to wait. While Sych reiterated that the new requirement started last summer, Engel said the end result is a disproportionate burden on his business alone – especially since he has no control over the timeline of mall owners coming to a new agreement.

“My greatest concern is that we have members who are excited for this space, we have employees lined up for next year, we have construction and architecture complete, and we’re ready for a site review and have been pleading for a site review for six months,” he told planning commissioners. “I don’t think we should have an extra burden that has not been placed on these large corporations coming in here.”

Several planning commissioners expressed sympathy for both the mall owners and Engel, asking staff to clearly articulate what needs to be in the updated agreement so it can be approved expeditiously. The board expressed optimism that both approvals could potentially be addressed in December. Engel tells The Ticker that while the process of obtaining township approval has been “quite the saga,” he also wants to be a good community partner and “understands the situation (township officials) are in.” Engel’s hopeful he’ll get the green light to start work soon, which could put Two Brothers Dog Park Cafe and Taphouse on track for a summer 2025 opening, he says.