Liberty Pines plans steps to keep units affordable

Ann Arbor may get three new condominium projects if the city gives its stamp of approval.

One of them will be aimed at entry-level buyers, the other two at mid-price ones.

Liberty Pines condominiums would be built on the north side of West Liberty Road at I-94. Ore Creek Development Co. of Brighton has partnered with Nick Meima, a leader in Scio Township's three cohousing developments and in Homeplace Community Land Trust, a nonprofit organization working to provide permanently affordable housing in Washtenaw County.

If approved, Liberty Pines would include 58 condominiums, including at least nine priced for the affordable market defined as 80 percent of median income. For a family of four, according to the city of Ann Arbor and U.S. Housing & Urban Development, that's $57,500.

Meima said regular, market-price units will probably be sold for $150,000 to $180,000. To purchase one of the affordable units, buyers would agree to capped appreciation. In other words, when they sell their unit, the amount of money they could walk away with would be limited.

The Ann Arbor City Planning Commission tabled Liberty Pines on Dec. 21, citing concerns about zoning and a sewer area already working at capacity.

According to a Planning Department staff report, the city is exploring a plan whereby developers of both Liberty Pines and West Towne, another condominium project, would upgrade the sewer system, receiving partial payback from the city.

West Towne would be built on approximately eight acres east of Liberty Pines, on West Liberty at South Maple Road. It would include 87 condominiums in seven buildings. Mike Concannon, a longtime lawyer and developer in Ann Arbor, has partnered on the project with Leo D. Gonzalez of Plymouth.

Concannon said the units, two- and three-stories with garages underneath, would be priced in the mid-$200,000s.

If negotiations with the city go well, said Meima and Concannon, their projects will return to the Planning Commission in January.

"It's only logical," said Concannon, "that the city will allow developers to work inside the Greenbelt."

Also inside the city but on its southeast edge, a Florida developer proposes 44 condominiums on a four-acre parcel.

EPIC Land Co., headquartered in Winter Park, Fla., would build The Oaks of Ann Arbor on the east side of Stone School Road south of I-94.

At its Dec. 21 meeting, the Planning Commission voted to recommend the project to City Council. EPIC owner Jeff Garno said while his condominiums haven't been definitively priced, he would like to sell 2,000-square-foot units, which include attached garages, for about $200,000 apiece.

Garno has built condominiums around the country, including Lansing and his hometown of Adrian. He chose Ann Arbor, he said, because it still has undeveloped land and demand for in-city housing remains high.

Catherine O'Donnell can be reached at codonnell@annarbornews.com.