Was It Fiction, Or A Prediction?

As a taxpaying resident of Belleville, Van Buren Township, Michigan, I wonder if our city is collecting new buildings? Our community has many available store fronts you can see immediately upon entering via main street or Rawsonville roads. As a matter of fact, there's a sign promising more new store fronts to be built as you travel south on Main. If entering from Huron River Drive there is a newer building that has stood empty for quite a few years. When I read in the local Belleville Independent Newspaper that the new construction on Main Street would result in store fronts such as a coop grocer and meat market, three new bars and more, my husband and I were very excited! Mostly we focused in on a coop grocery, commissary like, along with a meat market. We have always said we wished we had more grocery options around. Walmart, Meijer and Aldi are closest, but are also the only choices unless traveling an additional 10 minutes north, making a grocery trip 20 min commute one way for us. So when are these announced new stores coming? According to the local paper businesses were scheduled for Spring and early Summer openings. As we wait for these openings in the new buildings I find myself wondering why we have new buildings with so many existing empty storefronts.

A question to the powers that be in city planning; Why? Why do we need new buildings when we have so many existing store front properties available? Is it a refusal of the current owners to give some TLC back to the existing store fronts making them undesirable to renters? Hmmm, recently a local business leasee was spotted painting a local store front. Wow! I was drawn in by the old building's improvement and couldn't wait to see inside. I wonder why all that work is still sitting closed? As a matter of fact why are so many of the new buildings, that appear to be finished, still sitting without the proprietors that our community expected? And so should I ask our city planning committee, or is it the Downtown Development Authority I should ask? Just what is going on? Why are the new businesses that have opened so far simply a repeat of what we already have available? Where is the grocer, or new bar/restaurants? We already had smoke shops, as a matter of fact I know 3 on Belleville Rd. and I don't even smoke! We already had physical therapy services with 2 others already in existence, one on Belleville Rd, and one on Rawsonville, but a new one was the first to open in our new buildings. Salons! I believe our hair and nail salon count is 6 and now there are 2 new ones! So many choices when Fantastic Sam's on Belleville Rd. just closed due to not enough client count. It sure is helpful that the Fantastic Sam's on Rawsonville still exist.

Simply put, as a tax payer in this community, which entity should our community expect these answers from? Which entity would listen to us say stop? Please stop building new while so many store fronts sit vacant. The vacancies pull our community down with blight just as much as a new build makes it look good. Let's use existing resources and paint them, restore them, offer incentives to current business owners to invest in what they have. I still can't wait for these new businesses to open meeting the needs of our community. What do the resident want to see in the new places? The new building is looking ready! Mostly I would applaud seeing our current buildings used and maybe better advertised instead of the same ole smoke shop, physical therapy or hair salon that we seem to have an abundance of.