City Center II should move forward after tax payment

It’s no secret that the State News editorial board hasn’t been pleased with how the City Center II project has been handled in the past, but recent project developments are giving the city of East Lansing an opportunity to buckle down and finally push forward.

Strathmore Development Co., the developer for City Center II, a $116.4 million mixed-use project slated for the corner of Abbot Road and Grand River and Evergreen avenues, paid $96,000 Tuesday in taxes owed to the city. The payment ends a stalemate between the city and Strathmore that has lasted more than a month, putting a possible site plan amendment into motion.

Although it is a good thing Strathmore paid off its taxes, we believe the company has received preferential treatment from the city. East Lansing gave Strathmore four extensions on its payment plans, a remarkable amount considering the developer has millions of dollars in outstanding loans in Petoskey and Florida.

But now that Strathmore has balanced its debt to East Lansing, it’s important that the city takes a more stern approach to City Center II. The city needs to stay on Strathmore and hold it and president, Scott Chappelle, accountable. East Lansing no longer can allow the company multiple extensions on deadlines and expect development progress to be made.

Strathmore has showed in its other developments that it can be unreliable in financial dealings and it was risky for the city to continue with the company at the helm of the project. At this point in the game, the city has to stick with Strathmore. And because the city wants the area developed into City Center II, they need Strathmore.

Although Strathmore is crucial in the development, it doesn’t mean the city needs to be lenient with the company. City officials need to set stricter guidelines, and Strathmore must follow them to finally get the project rolling.

If the city can shy away from its previous leniency with Strathmore, this long-awaited and important project can show residents the city means business. In East Lansing, residents know projects will happen, but they also know it will likely take a while. Although City Center II has taken more than 10 years to make any significant progress, the fact that Strathmore is caught up with tax payments gives the developer and East Lansing the opportunity to show residents they are serious and give them faith in the city’s actions.

The City Center II project is no longer an issue of Strathmore owing money to the city. Now, the issue is more about the city owing East Lansing residents respect and progress in the project.

If Chappelle didn’t have money in several other developments across the country and was a regular resident of East Lansing, he would have been released from this project a long time ago. It’d be nice to see the city conduct business with the developers with the same sort of hard-nosed approach they do with the residents.

The city also owes the residents of East Lansing the long-awaited City Center II. After years of waiting and seeing nothing happen, it’s about time the project gets under way.

Both parties now are in the position to start making visible progress on City Center II, but it is the city’s job to make sure it gets finished — and soon.