By Scott Sullivan
Editor
Douglas City Council Monday approved a nonbinding 6-month memorandum of understanding with Mosaic Development to create attainable housing on 17 acres at 6825 Wiley Road once home of the Miro Golf Course.
The parcel is zoned R-5 Multi-Family Residential and can accommodate as many as 132 units, councilman Matt Balmer said.
Project goals are to provide rental and for-sale opportunities for households earning between $40,000 and $100,000 annually as well as market-value homes compatible with the community master plan.
Douglas in 2013 bought the land north of Wiley and west of Ferry Street from Joe Migas for $196,600, then annexed that land — which was adjacent to the then western city limits — from Saugatuck Township with an eye to moving some public works operations there.
The city dropped that plan after residential neighbors’ protests. That land, also west of the now-vacant former Haworth plant, contains some public works storage but essentially remains undeveloped.
In 2023 Douglas was about to list the parcel as surplus property, then sell it to the highest bidder and use the funds to help pay for relocating the current city hall, police station and DPW offices in the old hospital building at 415 Wiley, then decided a better use would be to explore development of attainable workforce housing within city limits.
City council sought to find an appropriate development firm to partner with, reviewed five bidders and decided on Mosaic.
Neighbors voiced concern Monday about development density, increased Wiley Road especially at the Blue Star Highway intersection, infrastructure effects, that only about 40 percent of the units were deemed “attainable” and more.
Monday’s memorandum, city manager Lisa Nocerini said, identifies preliminary roles, responsibilities and objectives for both parties and provides a basis for moving forward in good faith toward the negotiation of a potential binding development agreement without creating legal or financial obligations at this stage.
Any future binding agreement will be brought back to Council for formal approval, Nocerini said.
Council members, assuring neighbors the agreement was nonbinding and many steps were needed before any sale and the project could advance further, voted 7-0 in favor.
