Traverse City commissioners voted Monday to approve a five-year lease for a new Asian-fusion eatery to open in the former Scalawags space on State Street. They also approved a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) agreement for Orchardview Apartments, certified Traverse City Light & Power property on Cedar Run Road as surplus so it can be sold, accepted $300,000 in state grant funding for FishPass, and approved a contract for a Division Street water main project.

Commissioners approved a five-year lease with Malkeat Singh – an experienced restaurateur who ran Bombay Cuisine and Curry Kitchen in Grand Rapids – to open a new Asian-fusion eatery in the ground-floor space of the Larry C. Hardy Parking Garage. Singh will pay $273,960 for a five-year lease, a cost that breaks down to $4,566 per month. The contract includes one proposed five-year renewal option. Under the modified gross lease, the city would be responsible for property taxes and building insurance, while Singh would pay utilities and shared janitorial costs. The city will verify the electrical and mechanical systems are in working order and replace the hood and vent line in the space. He’ll have three months of free rent under the proposed contract to complete a buildout of the space, which could put the restaurant on track for a late 2024 opening.

Commissioners Monday approved a PILOT agreement with the Traverse City Housing Commission (TCHC) to rehabilitate 21 existing family townhomes within the Orchardview Apartments on Carter Road and construct two new apartment buildings containing 30 units. A PILOT agreement allows a developer to pay a percentage of rental income to the city instead of traditional taxes to offset the costs associated with offering below-market housing. TCHC sought a four percent PILOT agreement with a term of 45 years. When complete, the buildout at Orchardview will include 14 one-bedroom apartments, 16 two-bedroom apartments, 16 three-bedroom townhomes, and 5 four-bedroom townhomes. All units are dedicated to tenants making less than 60 percent of the area median income (AMI) and must remain so for the 45-year duration of the PILOT.

Commissioners also voted to certify that property owned by Traverse City Light & Power (TCLP) at 4728 Cedar Run Road is surplus and can be sold. The nearly 50-acre vacant site previously served as a dumping pit for coal ash from the former Bayside Power Plant in the Open Space. Due to that contamination, only 33.5 of the nearly 50 acres are useable. Residents and community groups have expressed interest in seeing the property become a public park, but no bids were submitted when TCLP issued a request-for-proposals (RFP) from nonprofits or governmental entities. The next step is to make the property “available to any potential buyer while encouraging public engagement and partnerships,” according to a memo from TCLP Executive Director Brandie Ekren.

Commissioners Monday formally accepted $300,000 in Michigan Department of Natural Resources Trust Fund grant dollars for park improvements as part of the FishPass project at the Union Street Dam site. The funding was announced in December 2020, but the disbursal of the funds was delayed due to ongoing litigation over the FishPass project. With the lawsuit resolved and construction underway, the city can now move forward with accepting the funding. Planned amenities include kayak landings both up and downstream of the new dam and a connecting rail between them, ADA-compliant boat landings, a step-stone access down to the river, new boardwalk, benches, trash bins, landscaping, and bike racks.

Finally, commissioners approved a $1.75 million contract with FER-PAL Construction for a water main project on Division Street. The contractor will repair 3,400 feet of corroded pipe –a 12-inch main that is almost 50 years old – with a cured-in-place-pipe lining process. Another contract for construction management services was awarded to the low bidder of Hubbell, Roth & Clark for $74,300.