Dearborn Council Approves Extension to Fakhoury
City Agrees to Demolish Three Buildings on Michigan Avenue
By a 5-1 vote, the Dearborn City Council tonight approved a one-year preferred developer extension to Dearborn developer Hakim Fakhoury.
The vote came after nearly two hours of sometimes heated discussion in the City Council’s meeting room. The lone vote against granting the extension was cast by Councilman George Darany. Councilman Doug Thomas was absent.
The former Brothers Tuxedo building at Michigan and Howard is one of three buildings the city will demolish.
As part of the vote, the city of Dearborn agreed to demolish three of Fakhoury’s buildings along Michigan Avenue. The city will be repaid for the cost when new buildings replace the old. If the project doesn’t move forward, Fakhoury ultimately would have to foot the demolition costs. The buildings include the former Bally/Vic Tanny building, the former Giuliano’s restaurant next to Merchant’s and the former Brother’s Tuxedo building at Michigan and Howard.
Demolition of those three structures is expected to begin in the spring, removing major eyesores from along Michigan Avenue.
In casting the lone dissenting vote, Darany said he didn’t have confidence Fakhoury could move the project forward. The soon-to-be second-term councilman said he’d rather the city try and find another developer for the city parking lot.
But just who that other “developer” might be that Darany mentions is anyone’s guess. One need look no further than the Burton-Katzman mess called West Village Commons that still sits half empty or the city’s inability to attract a developer to do something with the vacant, city-owned Quality Inn at Michigan and Brady. The Quality Inn property had zero responses from developers when it was put on the market, both Councilman Robert Abraham and Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr., mentioned at the meeting.
There are currently three elements for the property, according to the Economic and Community Development and city law departments: student housing, a hotel and a free standing parking deck. The Emagine Theatre could be located on the Bally/Vic Tanny site.
Fatburger's corporate office is now looking more favorably at a Dearborn location.
It is the possibility of the Emagine movie theatre coming to west Dearborn that has the corporate owners of Fatburger looking more favorably to opening a Dearborn location. At the meeting Monday night were two of the principals who said they have been working with Fakhoury for more than a year to open a Fatburger in his building at Michigan and Military.
Part of the holdup for Fatburger was that the corporate offices did not think the Dearborn location had proper “numbers” to succeed. The possibility of a movie theatre has helped change that opinion.
As for the student housing, the first phase of the project would house about 244 students with a second phase that would take the total to 432 students. The first phase of this project represents about $10-$13 million of private investment, according to the city’s law department.
December 21st, 2009 at 7:53 pm
The Dearborn city council is about as useful as the City Council of Detroit. Fakhoury has not followed through with any of his promises and the Ballys building is a dumping ground.
December 22nd, 2009 at 12:55 am
Show me one other developer that has followed thru more than him? Or one that is knocking on the door of Dearborn? oh that’s right…. there aren’t any.
Lets make some positive movement in 2010.
December 22nd, 2009 at 8:33 am
yahoo. the three major eyesore buildings are coming down. but tell me, how much does the city have to pay to take these buildings down? and how does the city get repaid?
December 22nd, 2009 at 8:45 am
They had just announced this morning on the news that Royal is going to build an Emagine theater with a bowling alley on the corner of 11 mile and superior, just east of Main street downtown. We have to do something to compete. I think that Hakim has Dearborn’s best interest at heart… I mean the guy lives right around the block from these developments.. Why wouldn’t he whant them to be successful? If they are, his property value increases…
December 22nd, 2009 at 9:16 am
Jeanette, think of it this way. The city went ahead and built the 2 parking garages for the hotel and office buildings that BK WAS going to build. I certainly hope that this time around they are smart enough not to start anything until the cement trucks are there ready to pour the foundations for the new buildings. What happened to the grants that Fakhoury had to tear them down?
December 22nd, 2009 at 9:24 am
Just because he didn’t pay (play) along with the former mayor and the beydoun shake down he was put in the corner on hold. This B.S. has gone on for years, nobody has been on the cities door step years yet they feel they get to pick and choose. Wise old proverb ” A little bit of something is better than alot of nothing”! Move the city along (it isn’t going to cost them anything) and maybe some “real” devolopers will come along and see the city is workable. Really gang, what do they have to lose (well kick-backs)! Merry Christmas!!!
December 22nd, 2009 at 9:27 am
he’s the only one and he knows it..hes got the city by the balls, he is typical of this area…average intelligence who thinks hes much brighter than everyone else…werent the demos of these bldgs supposed to move forward about a yr ago with part of the brownfield grant he was to get???
December 22nd, 2009 at 10:26 am
48124, the Fakhoury himself said the demos would begin in March and April of 2008, nearly 2 years ago. The credit union got the same grant and they tore down the Mercury on schedule in April of 2008.
I’m not really expecting much to happen in spring of this year.
And I really still want to know where they expect even 240 students to come from.
I think I remember Fakhoury marketing the apartments above Panera for students originally… Yeah, at 2000 at month. Even now they’re still overpriced. What’s he going to charge for the new places considering you can’t really go much cheaper on fitting out a building than he already has above Panera.
December 22nd, 2009 at 10:31 am
It would be interesting to know who the silent partners are in Fakhoury’sventures. This project could very well be the last stand of the old money-ed up Dearborn “movers and shakers” who are trying to save the west end from looking like the east end. But it’s like trying to save Constantinople from becoming Istanbul. Wonder how Sacred Heart would look with minarets?
December 22nd, 2009 at 10:59 am
Paul: the credit union didn’t take grant money. They tore the buildings down on their own dime. There is a reason the buildings haven’t come down yet. Once they do the time clock starts running from the state for its brownfield tax credits something like five years. If you don’t put anything up in that time you get no state tax credit aid. disagree on your timing. the buildings will come down because the city is taking that part on not Fakhoury
December 22nd, 2009 at 11:23 am
The Brownfield tax credits are the money that will be used to tear down the buildings and that is what Fakhoury had approved last night by council. And as Donna states, let’s hope the garages are put up after the new buildings promised.
December 22nd, 2009 at 11:26 am
Hakim stuck the city fathers again, and he said he would get them to go along, all except Darany who has something the others don’t — balls. Watch this abortion start but never finish — after all thats the Hakim way.
December 22nd, 2009 at 11:32 am
Speaking of the Credit Union, weren’t they supposed to build their new headquarters on that spot? Any news of that?
December 22nd, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Good for Darany. Fakhoury is smarter than the City Council and the Mayor, which, in reality, isn’t saying much. So the City is going to take down the building and Fakhoury is going to pay them back? Yeh, right. When? After he fills his other buildings and pays his taxes to get his buildings out of foreclosure?
Let’s have this conversation again next December, when, surprises of surprises, he goes for another extension. Like I said, the only good that Fakhoury does is to give bloggers something to talk about.
Enough of him. Have a very Blessed Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year.
December 22nd, 2009 at 1:20 pm
I’m don’t think the formatting I gave this will work so it might get a bit muddled up and I’m not sure if Deep will accept html posts but here goes…
Jim Sherlock, the tax credits were granted in 2007, not last night. Last night was an extension of DVP’s sole rights to the property’s development.
“Nearly a year ago — Dec. 18, 2007 — Fakhoury went before the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and received a number of tax credits — “mega credits” and Brownfield Redevelopment funds — totaling nearly $100 million, according to city of Dearborn Economic & Community Development Director Barry Murray.”
http://www.pressandguide.com/articles/2008/12/17/localnews/20081217-archive1.txt
Jeanette, I’m not sure what you mean by saying you disagree with my timing? Do you mean I’m wrong about when Mr. Fakhoury said he would tear down the buildings? My understanding is that he was responsible for the tear down and would be reimbursed for it. And I do understand the 5 year time limit but he should have been done with his projects by now.
“Demolition of the former Brothers Formal Wear building is tentatively scheduled to begin in March, Fakhoury said Wednesday. The process is expected to take about three weeks, and work on the new piano bar is expected to begin shortly after demolition of the old building is completed.
The former Bally’s/Vic Tanny building could come down in April, Fakhoury said, although some adjacent business owners have expressed concern about the demolition process.”
http://www.pressandguide.com/articles/2008/02/24/localnews/20080224-archive.txt
Enlarge the picture in this article and take a look at the time table as of 2005. All items, except the last one, should have been completed by the end of 2009.
http://www.pressandguide.com/articles/2009/12/19/news/doc4b2c0fef61306760697512.txt
And as far as my understanding goes the Mercury was part of the tax capture.
“To the east of the Gateway Lofts project sits the former Mercury Motel and Coffee Shop. That land remains vacant as part of a study on how obsolete buildings capture taxes.”
http://www.pressandguide.com/articles/2008/03/16/localnews/20080316-archive1.txt
Maybe I was mistaken and they are not part of the 12 sites, which I could not find listed, on Michigan between Military and Howard. But I thought I remembered reading that.
“The grant provides a state Brownfield tax credit valued at $9.1 million and state and local tax capture worth $46 million to support a multi-phased, mixed-use development across 12 sites along Michigan Avenue between Howard and Military.”
http://www.pressandguide.com/articles/2007/12/26/localnews/20071226-archive0.txt
Bob, apparently there were no immediate plans to develop the site of the Mercury but they did say they would landscape the property. Judging by the recent city beautiful business awards I guess cutting the grass now and then counts as landscaping now.
December 22nd, 2009 at 6:53 pm
Well Well isn’t this interesting the city is now tearing down buildings owned by Fakhoury. and where did that money come from. Let me see. Would that be from the 75 to 100 people that are going to be laid off from the City come the next couple of months. Something doesn’t add up!
December 27th, 2009 at 4:09 pm
I wonder if the city wil continue to employ Ferguson, Kwame’s buddy, for demos like they have in the past.