Mill Street Towns, Plymouth, Michigan

In Plymouth, Michigan, a long-vacant and blighted property sits between the city’s downtown and the historic Old Village, just half a mile from each. The 15-acre property is the site of the former Bathey Manufacturing Co., which closed shop in the late 1980s. After years of plans and proposals falling through, a developer has stepped forward with a solid and realistic plan for redevelopment.

Pulte Homes of Michigan, a subsidiary of the Atlanta-based $8 billion Fortune 500 company PulteGroup, retained PM Environmental, Inc. (PM) to perform environmental services on the project. The $20 million redevelopment includes the construction of 76 new residential townhomes to be called Mill Street Towns and incorporates pedestrian and bike trails throughout the site to help further the connection of downtown and Old Village. 

Upon completing Phase I and Phase II Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs), Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), PNAs, naphthalene, and lead were discovered on the property. PM will design and install a vapor barrier system and remove and dispose of contaminated soils at a licensed disposal facility. To help mitigate the costs associated with the environmental work, PM assisted in the preparation of a successful $1 million brownfield grant for vapor mitigation systems, retention pond liners, and implementation of due care response activity. In conjunction with the grant, tax increment financing (TIF) is being sought for reimbursement of approximately $2 million for demolition activities. 

The City of Plymouth has advocated strongly for support of this project. Environmental remediation of the site is considered a “public benefit” and was a key component of site-plan approval from the Planning Commission. The redevelopment will bring the property to safe and successful reuse, rectify the significant break in continuity between Plymouth downtown and Old Village, and increase the taxable value of not only the project property, but the surrounding properties as well. Construction activities began in Spring 2019 and are set to be completed by early 2022.