Council Sets Study Session for Dearborn Administrative Center

The Dearborn City Council has scheduled a study session to help clarify questions regarding the new Dearborn Administrative Center project.

The study session will be held at 6 p.m. June 20 in the council chambers at city hall, 13615 Michigan Ave. It is open to the public.

According to published reports, the council will receive an update on plans to move city hall operations from its current location to the former ADP building, located at 16901 Michigan Avenue, which was purchased for $3.2 million last year.

Officials have verbally agreed to sell city hall to the nonprofit Artspace for $1.65 million, but a contract has not been approved by the city council. Artspace plans to spend $17 million to renovate the building's interior to add 45 to 49 low-income artist lofts and studios.

City offices are scheduled to begin moving out of the current city hall this year and finish the transition by June 30, 2014 if the building is sold to Artspace.

Other issues for the June 20 meeting will include a discussion on whether an $8.5 million payment in lieu of taxes from Severstal North America should be used to help finance the Dearborn Administrative Center project.

The Severstal money was originally slated to be used for a proposed convention center at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Dearborn, however that project was delayed when the hotel was sold.

If the city moves forward with the city hall project, it will cost roughly $7.75 million, which includes $3.2 million for the purchase of the property, start-up and carrying costs, and $5.6 million for renovations.

Severstal previously said that the city could use the $8.5 million to fund the redevelopment of the Dearborn Administrative Center ($5 million). Other funds could potentially be allocated for the development of a Veterans Memorial Park adjacent to the DAC ($1.5 million); a contribution to Artspace for the pre-development feasibility and re-design study of the current city hall ($345,000); and a $1.4 million donation to Artspace.

Some residents spoke out and objected to the money being used for the proposed DAC at the council's meeting on May 21, which prompted the council to schedule its work session on June 20.

"There's a lot of misinformation out there, and I think it would be good to have everything in front of us to look at," councilman David Bazzy said.