KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – There are plans for a $3.3 million project to restore Kalamazoo’s historic Peninsula Building. It’s the triangular structure downtown just past the downtown mall at the Y intersection where East Michigan Avenue goes left and Portage Road goes right.
The brick building was damaged by a fire last summer that gutted apartments and office space in its upper stories.
City commissioners approved a Brownfield Development plan to capture future taxes, supplying about $736,000 to offset the cost of the project this week.
“The demolition cost for yeah the cleanup of the interior of the building, there’s asbestos abatement and some of the like security and safety sort of features of the building,” says city planner Jamie McCarthy.
The plan is to construct 11-apartments on the second and third floor of the structure.
McCarthy says five of them will be affordable units.
“Three affordable units at 60% of area median income and then 2 units at 80% AMI for 10 years.”
The building will continue to house a restaurant on the ground floor, which was most recently operated by the Saugatuck Brewing Company.
The old structure was originally built by Nicholas Bauman for the Peninsula Restaurant in 1874. It is one of Kalamazoo’s older buildings and has a State Historic Marker to prove it.
In its 152 year history, the structure has been home to a variety of businesses and organizations, including clothing and department stores, a stove company, a book bindery, and for years it was the headquarters for the Biggs/Gilmore ad agency, which did marketing for Kellogg, Stryker, Kimberly Clark and other national clients.
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