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More Campus Village expansion considered

Possible construction entails rezoning

by Paul White
Vanguard Staff Writer

April 25, 2005 —

If the Campus Village management has its way, the next few years could bring a new wave of off-campus student housing and small retail shops to the SVSU community. The proposed construction would help to give Saginaw Valley State University more of a "traditional" campus feel, yet wouldn't detract from the campus' own unique setup.

While Phase Two of the Campus Village expansion is currently underway, bringing apartments across the street from the SVSU campus, a Phase Three is already in the workings.

Although nothing is concrete as of now, there are definite plans to bring new construction to the existing site. The way that the new construction would differ from the existing tenements would be that these units would not be zoned multi-family, as the current units are.

Instead, these potential new units would be zoned for small businesses and small apartments, creating a community that does not exist near the SVSU campus.

Kochville Township Supervisor Ken Bayne explains that this expansion is not going to be around the corner of Pierce and Davis. Currently, the Campus Village does not own the land for the potential expansion, but is in the workings to purchase it. However, Bayne wants the community to be fully aware of the potential developmental plans, and in the next month or so, an informational meeting will be held so residents can see the proposed plans.

The new land must also be re-zoned before potential construction could occur on the property.

"We want the community to feel like they are a part of this process," Bayne explains.

He believes that the future development will be an asset to the community, as residents will benefit from the small shops and campus-town environment that the construction will help to foster. Even though all of the new tenants in the expansion would be renters, Bayne doesn't believe that is necessarily a bad thing.

"They help diversify the makeup of Kochville Township," he said.

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