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Sale of North Capitol Parking ramp to go before city council again

By Rob South, WKAR News

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkar/local-wkar-879651.mp3

LANSING, MI – Lansing Community College is again asking to buy the North Capitol Parking Ramp from the city of Lansing. The Lansing city council rejected two deals to sell the ramp to the college last year.

Lansing Community College is offering the city $2.8 million dollars or about $100,000 more than the price rejected by the city council last year. The new offer would also lease office space located in the ramp back to the city at $6 a square foot. The previous deals were priced at $12 a foot.

Councilmember Carol Wood voted against the two previous deals. She says she'll look over LCC's new offer before making a decision.

"For me, in making that determination, first is it in he best interest of the city?" Wood says. "Second, whether in the long run, after it's sold, what will the city recoup? Will it be on the tax rolls? Will there be other issues we can take a look at?"

An offer last November by Lansing Developer Joel Ferguson to buy the ramp was rejected by Mayor Virg Bernero. Bernero Chief of Staff Jerry Ambrose says the city isn't interested in selling the ramp to a private entity.

"We have a common constituency in terms of our tax payers, in terms of our interest in parking," Ambrose says. "And it makes a lot of sense for us to work directly with LCC to help solve their problems and there are a lot of benefits to us--we're getting fair market value and we're alleviated from having to manage the ramp."

The city council could hold a public hearing on the latest deal next month.

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