City shares details on ambitious downtown marketplace plan

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Port Huron’s Downtown Development Authority unveiled conceptual designs for a new marketplace located at the former Art Van site in Downtown Port Huron. At a meeting  of the D.D.A. on Wednesday, City Manager James Freed shared a site plan and preliminary drawings for the proposed project. The building, which most recently served as an indoor used car dealership, was purchased by the St. Clair County Board of Commissioners in 2014. “They have been so good to work with,” said Freed in regards to St. Clair County Administrator Karry Hepting and Commission Chair Jeff Bohm. “We appreciate the county stepping up, when nobody else really would, to secure that facility.” Freed also said he was confident a deal with the county could be made, but did not share specifics about terms. Artists renderings released in the Wednesday morning meeting show the south half of the building being demolished with the north part, including the arched roof, remaining. The building would include booth space for vendors such as farmers and artists. It also allows space for a larger tenant, such as a restaurant or brewery, to lease out a section of the facility. If a purchase agreement is made, site work on the marketplace could begin early next year. Freed says a part time or full time market manager would also be hired by the city to run the facility. Two plans were proposed  in Wednesday’s D.D.A. meeting, ranging in costs between $2.7 million and $3.3 million. Freed says About $950,000 will come from the city’s Tax Increment Fund (T.I.F.), with the city manager saying he will solicit grants for the remainder of the costs. “We will not go into debt to build this,” added Freed.