Neighborhood Seeks City's Third NEZ Designation

Advance Newspapers, October, 2005
By Nathan Peck


Proposed zoning for a northeast side neighborhood could put more money in the bank for homeowners.

Grand Rapids city commissioners set a Nov. 1 public hearing to gain public input on designating a portion of the Belknap Lookout region as a Neighborhood Enterprise Zone. The zoning would allow homeowners in a six-block area to avoid paying increased property taxes on home improvements for a period of 12 years.

The Neighbors of Belknap Lookout and the Grand Rapids Cohousing Community sought the rezoning to kick-start home improvement in the area, said Neighbors chair John Skryski.

"This will plant a seed that will spread from that point," Skryski said. The area is improving; this will be a more cohesive process. Whereas you might naturally see one or two people working on homes on a block per year, we'll start seeing five or six."

Assistant City Manager Victor Vasquez said the city has previously designated two NEZs, in the North Baxter and Turner Gateway Neighborhoods.

Skryski hopes the recent development and expansion of medical facilities along Michigan Street will have a carryover effect on the Lookout area.

"With the development happening downtown, as close as we are, it's going to benefit everyone," he said.

For the Grand Rapids Cohousing Community, the designation will allow the group to achieve its goal of a diverse community, said Vice President Marty Morgan. The $3.5 million Newberry Place development will feature condo choices to suit many income levels.

"We're intending to provide options for single people, newlyweds, new families, empty nesters, and retirees," Morgan said. "You could move through states of life in this one development."

The group stresses communal living, with all condo owners having a stake in the development and the decision-making process.

"We're trying to be intentional about making living situations more community-oriented," Morgan said.

The NEZ will provide benefits to all property owners in the area, said 2nd Ward Commissioner Rick Tormala, "We have to revitalize neighborhoods the way we lose them, house by house and block by block."