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THE FUTURE of 415 W. WASHINGTON
The fate of 415 W. Washington is in our hands. Will it be demolished to become yet another nondescript luxury housing development, a looming barrier between the nearby neighborhood and downtown? Or will it be renovated to become a one-of-a-kind community-enhancing site that beautifully transitions from downtown to the Old West Side neighborhood, respecting the vital natural function of the floodplain and the federally protected Chimney Swifts? Imagine…an amenity along the new TreeLine Trail that the entire city can enjoy!
We ask the City to consider an alternate plan for adaptive reuse of the existing buildings.
What are those boarded up buildings and parking lot on W. Washington Street across from the Y?
Here is a little history taken from author Grace Shackman (The garage at the center of the greenway debate, Ann Arbor Observer, February 2007): 415 West Washington (415) sits within the Old West Side Historic District and within the Allen Creek Floodplain.
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415 W. Washington is in the floodplain. How does that impact development?
Virtually the entire 415 site is in the Allen Creek Floodplain. Floodplains are natural features along creeks and rivers which carry and absorb excess water from those creeks and rivers during heavy rain events.
More...
415 W. Washington is in the Old West Side Historic District. How does the Historic District Commission view this site?
In 1990, the Old West Side Historic District Study Committee Report ruled that the current buildings and accessory structures are contributing structures to the OWS Historic District. The HDC has included this contributing status in their motions for the approval of work since then, most recently in 2018.
More...
What does that mean? What about our sustainability goals?
This approval does not mean the City is required to demolish the buildings. It only offers the option. Keeping and renovating the historic buildings on the 415 W. Washington site, with the use of sustainable materials, would be much more environmentally friendly than demolishing them, putting the materials in the landfill, and building new. Repurposing and renewing this site would fit in with the City’s A2Zero Climate Action Plan. Remember that the greenest building is one that already exists. (See the groundbreaking study, The Greenest Building: Quantifying the Environmental Value of Building Reuse, Preservation Green Lab of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, January 2012.)
What would that look like?
The area surrounding 415 has recently been designated a Creative District by the DDA. We support preserving, renovating and repurposing the existing buildings for creative purposes, while building a modest number of housing units outside of the floodplain in the SW corner off W. Liberty. This would provide much-needed artist/small business studios, meeting areas, small shops, pop-up food stalls, and greenspace — and protect the Chimney Swifts as well. (More about the Chimney Swifts below!)
More...
What is this about the Chimney Swifts?
The brick chimney at 415 is heavily used by Ann Arbor’s Chimney Swifts, a species classified as Near Threatened in the U.S. and Endangered in nearby Canada. Chimney Swifts are unable to perch in the way typical songbirds do.
More...
What is the "Preferred Option" the City of Ann Arbor is putting forward? Does it have affordable housing?
The City has put several options before the public for comment and chose a “preferred option” but this was under the false pretense of adding affordable housing.
More...
What are the next steps?
The fate of 415 W. Washington is in our hands. Will it be demolished to become yet another nondescript luxury housing development, a looming barrier between the nearby neighborhood and downtown? Or will it be renovated to become a one-of-a-kind, community-enhancing site that beautifully transitions from downtown to the Old West Side neighborhood, respecting the vital natural function of the floodplain and the federally protected Chimney Swifts? Imagine...an amenity along the new TreeLine Trail that the entire city can enjoy.
We ask the City to consider an alternate plan for adaptive reuse of the existing buildings.
The fate of 415 W. Washington is in our hands. Will it be demolished to become yet another nondescript luxury housing development, a looming barrier between the nearby neighborhood and downtown? Or will it be renovated to become a one-of-a-kind community-enhancing site that beautifully transitions from downtown to the Old West Side neighborhood, respecting the vital natural function of the floodplain and the federally protected Chimney Swifts? Imagine…an amenity along the new TreeLine Trail that the entire city can enjoy!
We ask the City to consider an alternate plan for adaptive reuse of the existing buildings.
What are those boarded up buildings and parking lot on W. Washington Street across from the Y?
Here is a little history taken from author Grace Shackman (The garage at the center of the greenway debate, Ann Arbor Observer, February 2007): 415 West Washington (415) sits within the Old West Side Historic District and within the Allen Creek Floodplain.
More...
415 W. Washington is in the floodplain. How does that impact development?
Virtually the entire 415 site is in the Allen Creek Floodplain. Floodplains are natural features along creeks and rivers which carry and absorb excess water from those creeks and rivers during heavy rain events.
More...
415 W. Washington is in the Old West Side Historic District. How does the Historic District Commission view this site?
In 1990, the Old West Side Historic District Study Committee Report ruled that the current buildings and accessory structures are contributing structures to the OWS Historic District. The HDC has included this contributing status in their motions for the approval of work since then, most recently in 2018.
More...
What does that mean? What about our sustainability goals?
This approval does not mean the City is required to demolish the buildings. It only offers the option. Keeping and renovating the historic buildings on the 415 W. Washington site, with the use of sustainable materials, would be much more environmentally friendly than demolishing them, putting the materials in the landfill, and building new. Repurposing and renewing this site would fit in with the City’s A2Zero Climate Action Plan. Remember that the greenest building is one that already exists. (See the groundbreaking study, The Greenest Building: Quantifying the Environmental Value of Building Reuse, Preservation Green Lab of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, January 2012.)
What would that look like?
The area surrounding 415 has recently been designated a Creative District by the DDA. We support preserving, renovating and repurposing the existing buildings for creative purposes, while building a modest number of housing units outside of the floodplain in the SW corner off W. Liberty. This would provide much-needed artist/small business studios, meeting areas, small shops, pop-up food stalls, and greenspace — and protect the Chimney Swifts as well. (More about the Chimney Swifts below!)
More...
What is this about the Chimney Swifts?
The brick chimney at 415 is heavily used by Ann Arbor’s Chimney Swifts, a species classified as Near Threatened in the U.S. and Endangered in nearby Canada. Chimney Swifts are unable to perch in the way typical songbirds do.
More...
What is the "Preferred Option" the City of Ann Arbor is putting forward? Does it have affordable housing?
The City has put several options before the public for comment and chose a “preferred option” but this was under the false pretense of adding affordable housing.
More...
What are the next steps?
The fate of 415 W. Washington is in our hands. Will it be demolished to become yet another nondescript luxury housing development, a looming barrier between the nearby neighborhood and downtown? Or will it be renovated to become a one-of-a-kind, community-enhancing site that beautifully transitions from downtown to the Old West Side neighborhood, respecting the vital natural function of the floodplain and the federally protected Chimney Swifts? Imagine...an amenity along the new TreeLine Trail that the entire city can enjoy.
We ask the City to consider an alternate plan for adaptive reuse of the existing buildings.