Obsolete Property Rehabilitation Act (OPRA) Application

Thank you for your interest in the City of Mt. Pleasant’s Obsolete Property Rehabilitation Act (OPRA) program. Your commitment to making an economic investment in our community is greatly appreciated and staff is here to provide assistance throughout the application process.

Before you begin this application, we strongly recommend that you thoroughly read the City's approved OPRA policy, which can be found here: https://cms2.revize.com/revize/mtpleasant/Boards_Commission/approved%20policies/OPRA_Policy.pdf Understanding the policy will provide you with valuable insights into the program objectives, evaluation criteria, and eligibility requirements. This knowledge is essential for preparing a comprehensive and well-informed application.

As you proceed with the application, we encourage you to carefully review and thoughtfully answer all questions. The information you provide is crucial for us to understand the scope, impact, and benefits of your proposed project. Detailed and accurate responses will enable a thorough evaluation of your application. Please be aware that all applications will undergo review by our staff before being forwarded to the City Commission for further consideration. The Commission’s decision will be based on how well your project aligns with the goals and criteria of the OPRA program, as well as its potential impact on the City of Mt. Pleasant.

We look forward to reviewing your application and are excited about the possibility of collaborating to achieve our shared objectives of growth and development in the City of Mt. Pleasant.

Ineligible Applicants or Entities: An applicant or entity must not have: A.) Outstanding taxes or City utilities owed. B.) Pending or current litigation, including but not limited to property tax appeals, against the City by the applicant or its agents. C.) Outstanding written orders or violations for any property under its ownership that is located in the city. D.) Commenced rehabilitation of the facility before the establishment of the Obsolete Property Rehabilitation District.

Questions? Contact Aaron Desentz, City Manager at (989) 779-5323 or by email at adesentz@mt-pleasant.org

State of Michigan OPRA Information: https://www.michigan.gov/taxes/property/exemptions/obsolete/obsolete-property-rehabilitation-act-opra#:~:text=The%20Obsolete%20Property%20Rehabilitation%20Act,the%20requirements%20of%20the%20Act.

GOALS OF THE CITY'S OPRA PROGRAM

Applications for OPRA exemptions are to be used to encourage rehabilitation of obsolete property that will facilitate redevelopment, foster job creation and expand the tax base for the City of Mt.Pleasant. It is recognized that this program is a discretionary program and maybe utilized to achieve the goals and priorities identified by the Mt. Pleasant community through various adopted plans at the discretion of the City Commission. This program supports the City of Mt. Pleasant’s economic development strategy to identify and facilitate opportunities for redevelopmentof commercial sites, including the following:

A.) To attract exceptional redevelopment projects in the City of Mt. Pleasant in order to provide a greater tax base forfuture generations.

B.) To promote the rehabilitation of contaminated, blighted or functionally obsolete properties that provides significant benefits to the community.

C.) To encourage and promote significant capital investments that will serve as a catalyst for other significant commercial activity and investments within the community.

D.) To create or retain a significant number of employment opportunities with the community that offer competitive wages.

E.) To promote architectural excellence that demonstrates state of the art design, placement, sense of place, form, scale and identity that exceeds City standards.

Name

First NameLast Name

Email

example@example.com

Phone Number

Area CodePhone Number

Address of Applicant

Street Address

Street Address Line 2

CityState / Province

Postal / Zip Code

Address of Proposed Redevelopment for OPRA Application

Street Address

Street Address Line 2

CityState / Province

Postal / Zip Code

1.) Describe your project and provide specific details on how it will facilitate the development of sites that would not otherwise be developed without tax exemption assistance. Include anticipated investment levels and timelines.*

Criteria: To facilitate the development process and to achieve development of sites that would not be developed without tax exemption assistance.

2.) How will your project address blight removal or redevelopment of commercial and industrial areas? Provide specific details on the nature of redevelopment, expected private investment amounts, and the expected increase in the city's tax base.*

Criteria: To remove blight and/or encourage redevelopment of commercial and industrial areas that result in high quality redevelopment, private investment, and an increase in the City tax base.

3.) Provide an estimate of the number of local jobs your project will retain or create. Specify the diversity of these jobs and include information on the proposed wages and benefits.*

Criteria: To retain local jobs and/or increase the number and diversity of high-quality jobs that offer attractive wages and benefits.

4.) Describe the additional private development in Mt. Pleasant your project will encourage. Provide examples of direct or indirect spin-off developments and investment levels, excluding the use of tax exemption.*

Criteria: To encourage additional unsubsidized private development in the City of Mt. Pleasant, either directly or indirectly through spin-off development (without the use of tax exemption).

5.) Detail any increased redevelopment costs, such as contaminated site clean-up or specialized trades. Provide cost estimates and explain how OPRA will offset these additional expenses.*

Criteria: To offset increased costs of redevelopment (i.e., a contaminated site clean-up, use of specialized trades) beyond the costs normally incurred in development.

6.) Explain how your project will leverage additional private financial investment. Include specific figures or investment ratios anticipated.*

Criteria: To leverage additional private financial investment into the project.

7.) Estimate the number of high-quality jobs your project will create within the city, specifying how these positions will offer wages equal to or greater than the average local wage for similar roles.*

Criteria: To create high-quality jobs in the city, paying wages equal to or greater than the average local wage of the same class.

8.) Describe the expected contribution of your project to the city's net commercial, industrial, or general tax base. Provide specific investment figures and detail the optimization plans for the proposed site.*

Criteria: To add to the net commercial, industrial or general tax base of the city and optimize the private development of the proposed site.

9.) Outline the new infrastructure or services your project will provide that are currently unavailable in the city. Include details on the nature and scale of these services or infrastructure.*

Criteria: To provide infrastructure or services not already provided in the city.

10.) Discuss the anticipated impact of your project on city infrastructure, road construction, traffic, and other city services. Provide specific details on how your project will minimize these impacts.*

Criteria: To minimize improvements in city infrastructure, road construction, or other traffic matters. Also to be considered is the impact of the proposal on other City services such as public safety, water or water recovery, streets and parks.

11.) Explain how your project aligns with city landuse regulations, zoning, and planning policies. Include specific examples of compliance.*

Criteria: To be consist with City land use regulations, zoning and planning policies.

12.) Describe if and how your project supports local businesses and, if applicable, its role in helping existing businesses expand within the city. Provide specific examples and anticipated outcomes.*

Criteria: To support local businesses; additional consideration may be given to existing businesses seeking to expand and grow within the city.

13.) Detail how your project meets other public policy goals and objectives adopted by the City of Mt. Pleasant or the community. Provide specific examples and anticipated impacts.*

Criteria: To meet other public policy goals and objectives, as adopted by the City of Mt. Pleasant or community.

Other Information

Other information you'd like to include with your application not covered in the answers above..

Image or other files to include with your application.

Browse Files

Signature*

Please sign before submitting application.

City of Mt. Pleasant Obsolete Property Rehabilitation Act (OPRA) Application