By Pat Maurer
Correspondent
With the help of Clare Businessman Steve Letherer, the City will be able to begin the process to develop a third Industrial Park on the south side of the original Industrial Park.
After the last lot in the North Industrial Park was sold to Renosol earlier this year, there were no more lots available in Clare for further industrial development, Clare City Manager Jeremy Howard reported to the City Commission Monday evening.
He said, “After several discussions among Clare Industrial Development Corporation members, and meetings with the Environmental Development Administration, Mid-Michigan Development Corporation and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, an option became available.” He said that “state and possibly federal dollars might be available to enable the IDC and the City to create an industrial park,” but that “those funds are not available for the purchase of land.”
Howard said “the greater issue was to find funding to purchase property.”
He continued, “The IDC immediately started meeting and holding discussions to investigate the possibility of acquiring land to start a 3rd Industrial Park. That option to create another industrial park became a reality with the discovery that the Russell property (80 acres which adjoins the 15 landlocked acres the City already owns) was for sale. The IDC negotiated a price of $1,060,000 for the purchase, which would give the City 95 acres to develop a third Industrial Park but the IDC did not have the funds for the purchase.
IDC member Steve Letherer came to the IDC board and proposed to “front” the funds for the purchase, buy the property and deed the 80 acres to the City at closing, with the stipulation that as the new park’s lots are sold “the funds would be used to pay Steve and the Letherer family back over the timeframe that it takes to sell all of the lots.”
Howard reported, “At this time a purchase agreement has been entered into for the negotiated price.” He added, under the agreement the IDC has with the City, once the new park is developed, they will sell the lots and capture the funds to pay back the Letherer family.
Howard said, “This amazing gesture made by Steve and the Letherer family cannot go unspoken or unrecognized. It would have been very difficult [and time consuming] for the City and the IDC to round up enough funding to acquire this land….without the generosity of Steve’s offer to individually fund the property purchase.” He added, “The City of Clare, the IDC and the community thank you and your family.” Letherer thanked the City for always supporting his business. “The City of Clare has been good to me, my family and employees,” he said.
A resolution was passed “proclaiming support for the IDC to work with Steve and the property sellers to complete the transaction and enter into an agreement for the repayment of the funds.”