Environmental and Economic Development services for the redevelopment of the former Summit Place Mall property in Waterford Township.
The abandoned and obsolete former Summit Place Mall was more than just an eyesore in the Oakland County community, it was acting as an anchor slowly sinking nearby commercial businesses and spreading blight. Prior attempts to attract the right developer to take on this 1.5 million square foot goliath of a brownfield never gained traction, but then Summit 327, LLC – an affiliate of Ari-El Enterprises – purchased the property in 2018 and within months, demolition of the 1960s-era mall began. The entire site will be radically transformed into a modern business park, attracting new industrial and commercial business growth to the area and creating jobs. The new business park is being marketed as the Oakland County Business Center and is anticipated to contain over 1 million square feet of new light industrial, research and development, logistics, office and engineering facilities.
AKT Peerless performed environmental due diligence for the client by completing a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA), Phase II ESA and Baseline Environmental Assessment. AKT Peerless also performed a supplemental subsurface investigation to identify and evaluate the possible presence of an underground storage tank (UST) on the property. A tank was not identified, but AKT Peerless did coordinate with the earthwork contractor and provide oversight during the remediation of contaminated soils in the area of a former UST. Further, AKT Peerless provided economic development
services to secure incentives to assist with redevelopment activities.
AKT Peerless secured United States Environmental Protection Agency grant funds through Oakland County to conduct environmental due diligence (Phase I ESA and Baseline Environmental Assessment). AKT Peerless also successfully secured a 10-year Commercial Rehabilitation Act tax abatement and local and Michigan Economic Development Corporation support of brownfield tax increment financing to offset the project’s brownfield related costs and ultimately make the project financially feasible.
