Schor announces new City Hall design, housing repair assistance program during State of the City

The City of Lansing plans to launch a new program to help residents repair their homes.

Mayor Andy Schor announced the program, which will provide grants of up to $40,000 to low-income residents in need of home repairs, during his State of the City address Thursday.

He said it’s a key part of the city’s goal to ensure everyone has access to housing.

“Housing for all is not just about new apartments and houses, it’s also about rehabilitation of what we already have,” Schor said. “We need to help update and fix our aging housing stock before it falls into disrepair and needs to be knocked down, which lessens the options for people to live in.”

Applications for the program, created in partnership with Capital Area Community Services, are expected to go live this spring.

Another component of the city’s housing plan is to increase crackdowns on unsafe rental properties.

While Schor said it is only a minority of landlords who need to be held accountable, he said ensuring properties are up to code will be a priority this year.

“To all the landlords out there just looking to make a buck without providing good housing that complies with the law, I’m here to tell you that we will use every power in our arsenal to make you fix the property, or we will see you in court,” Schor said.

The city plans to spend $4.7 million on housing over the next year, Schor said.

He said providing housing options is the first step towards increasing economic activity in the city.

“Whether they’re working in person or remotely, they’ll live and be active in our community, creating vibrancy that we have always known downtown,” Schor said.

The city also plans to make it a bit cheaper to repair sidewalks in residential areas by waiving permit fees. The city has more than 600 miles of sidewalks, but state road funds cannot be used on sidewalks, Schor explained, meaning residents often share the cost of sidewalk repairs.

On the topic of state road funding, Schor praised Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s attempts to come up with a long-term solution but called on the Michigan Legislature to amend how road funds are allocated to local governments.

He said the city receives $17 million per year, including from their own local millage, but needs more than $300 million in road repairs.

“We need solutions for our neighborhood streets that we drive down every day, and I hear that all the time,” Schor said.

Schor agreed with the governor’s assessment in her State of the State address at the end of February when she said that Michigan Ave., which runs between the Michigan Capitol and Michigan State University, is “like the surface of the moon.”

He said that’s because of recent construction projects in the area and noted that the road will undergo repairs this year.

While road crews work on Michigan Ave. this summer, Schor encouraged residents to support local businesses affected by the construction.

“Once completed, we will have an improved Capitol to campus corridor that’s more friendly to the neighborhood businesses and residents, but we can’t forget to help them out,” Schor said. “So go buy something on Michigan Ave.; tell them the mayor sent you.”

Schor took time to highlight other types of construction projects as well, touting that construction of the Ovation concert venue is expected to “go vertical” with steel and concrete “very soon.”

He also unveiled renderings of the new City Hall publicly for the first time, showing off the design of the building that will be constructed on the site of a parking lot across from the CATA bus station later this year.

“This new facility will be user-friendly, with a one-stop-shop where people can do business with the city,” Schor said.

Once city government completes its move into the new building, Schor said the existing City Hall, across from the Michigan Capitol, will be converted into a hotel with a restaurant.