Brownfield redevelopment is allowing a previously industrial property in Kalamazoo to be repositioned for new housing and community services. The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy is awarding $1 million to support the $19 million William Schma House project at 1900 Belford Street.
Edison Community Partners, the city of Kalamazoo and Kalamazoo County are involved in the redevelopment, which will transform a 6.64-acre portion of a former paper mill site into three buildings containing 48 affordable apartments.
The development also will provide space for support programs, including mental health services, recovery coaching and workforce training. Additional site features are planned to include playgrounds, a dog park and walking paths.
The property was previously part of a large paper mill complex that operated from the late 19th century until its closure in 1997. The redevelopment parcel included Mill D and a coal-fired power plant, leaving contamination from PCBs, metals, petroleum and chlorinated solvents.
Kalamazoo acquired the property in 2005 and subsequently worked with EGLE and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on a $11.4 million environmental cleanup effort. That work included demolition of Mill D, additional environmental assessments, realignment of Portage Creek, removal of approximately 12,000 tons of contaminated material and restoration of the floodplain.
The latest EGLE funding will support additional contaminated-soil removal, installation of a vapor venting system beneath the new buildings and protective barriers designed to limit exposure to remaining contamination.
The William Schma House will maintain rents for households earning between 20% and 80% of the area median income through a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement with Kalamazoo.
The city and Kalamazoo County are contributing more than $5 million combined toward the redevelopment. The project is scheduled for completion in fall 2027.
For construction owners and developers, the project illustrates how brownfield properties can require extensive environmental and site preparation work before vertical construction begins. Coordinating remediation, floodplain improvements, environmental controls and new building construction can expand project scope but also create opportunities to return long-vacant industrial land to productive use.
Source: Michigan Govt.
