Those hoping for a better (or at least more engaging) use of a parcel that takes up more than half a block in downtown Traverse City probably shouldn’t hold their breath.

Some city and downtown officials have long expressed a desire to see something else happen at 142 E. State Street, a 1.5-acre property owned and operated by AT&T.

This feeling has intensified in recent years as various initiatives like FishPass and Rotary Square have unfolded on adjacent property, putting more eyes on the monolithic western section of the AT&T complex and the large, mostly vacant parking lot that abuts it.

“Certainly there’s a tremendous opportunity to something more dynamic on that corner using all of the additional space in the parking lot, and given the size of the building itself, there’s even more potential,” Traverse City Downtown Development Authority CEO Harry Burkholder tells The Ticker. “The DDA would love to explore ways that we could make that space more dynamic and engaging.”

The DDA demolished an old bank building in 2022 and transformed the property into a public space now known as Rotary Square, which sits immediately west of the AT&T parking lot. Among other things, Rotary Square is currently used for the Sara Hardy Downtown Farmers Market. Burkholder says AT&T won’t allow use of its parking lot for market vendors or customers, and the company has rejected similar requests in the past for various events.

Burkholder, however, dreams of more than just parking access. If AT&T would part with it, he says, the large lot could be a huge boost to Rotary Square and the various activities that occur there. 

“I mean, the parking lot would double the size of the Rotary Square if we were able to obtain it,” he says.

FishPass and Rotary Square aren't the only two things set to bring more activity to that corner of downtown, Burkholder says. The recent conversion of State Street from one-way to two-way traffic also is giving people a fresh look at the street and is another reason to look at boosting underutilized properties there, he feels. 

"It's small steps, but we're seeing more development on State Street; more commerical activity and more retail activity," he says. "Two-way traffic is bringing a lot more eyes and people to that corridor."

FishPass spokesperson Leah McCallum says the AT&T parking lot in particular “could be so much more.”

“FishPass will welcome school groups, families, anglers, and academic partners to our education and research building on the northern edge of our project site, right across the street from what is sadly a drab, aging parking lot,” McCallum tells The Ticker. “It’d be exciting to see a vibrant, accessible space from our front door.”

But Chicago-based AT&T spokesman Phil Hayes says the company doesn’t plan to relinquish the property anytime soon.

“As we have consistently shared with local stakeholders, our property located in downtown Traverse City plays a key role in connecting our customers where they live and work,” he tells The Ticker. “We have no intention of selling the property at this time.”

Hayes and AT&T declined to answer The Ticker's questions about what exactly goes on at the property or whether the parking lot may be made available to other groups at some point in the future.

At the request of downtown officials including former DDA CEO Jean Derenzy, former State Senator Wayne Schmidt poked around a few years ago to see what he could find out about AT&T operations on the site and whether they’d be amenable to other uses.

Schmidt tells The Ticker he discovered that there are substantial power backup capabilities at the site – including, he says, fuel tanks under the parking lot – that would be prohibitively expensive to move.

“The difficulty is that the national company just doesn't have all that much interest in moving some of their security and safety backups, specifically the power generation and the diesel tanks, because it would cost millions and millions of dollars,” he says. “There’s just no incentive for them to do that.”

While it’s unlikely that AT&T needs all the space it once did on the site, Schmidt says important activities are still occurring there.

“It’s still a central office, it still has critical links for telecommunications,” he says. “They probably don’t need all the footprint or the space, but it’s still a very necessary operation.”

It is not uncommon for large utility buildings to be located in or on the outskirts of downtowns all throughout Michigan and the Midwest, Schmidt says, meaning municipalities everywhere have the same concerns as they look at what now appear to be underutilized buildings.

“This is not just a Traverse City issue,” he says. “There are lots of downtowns that would like to have the same thing done, but even if it can or could be done, the telephone company certainly isn’t going to pick up that tab.”