I have lived in the neighborhood immediately adjacent to the Georgetown Mall in Ann Arbor for almost twenty years. We have shopped there and our son was even a bagger for a short time while he attending Pioneer High School. I am well aware of the public reaction to the closing of the final remaining business, Kroger.  As an Ann Arbor Real Estate agent I see the situation from a little different perspective. The Mall at Georgetown has been falling into disrepair for years. I can remember when all the stores and most of the office building space was leased by viable businesses. The Mall owner was notorious for neglecting maintenance and making promises he was unable or unwilling to keep. The parking lot on the south and west sides looks like a battle field with broken pavement and pot holes the size of bushel baskets. Roofs leaked and buildings were generally neglected to the chagrin of business people trying to operate successfully.  Three years ago there were reports of vagrants living in the abandoned office building and high school kids often gathered and loitered making the shoppers generally afraid and intimidated.

Anyone who lives along King George Blvd or Page Ave knows the Mall, in it's current state, is only bringing their home values down. Who would want to live next to a crumbling icon of years gone by or the possibility that the site sits for years with weeds growing and graffiti covered walls? I attended several of the community meetings when proposals for redevelopment were unveiled. I heard the comments of the local residents about how much their Kroger meant to them. I also heard the Kroger spokesperson explain how economically unviable it would be to try to operate a store in the smaller space the owner/developer was willing to provide. He was promising many boutique stores with a pedestrian mall in the center and possibly some condos on the second level above the retail space.  Personally, I thought some of the proposals had merit but most of the local residents protested the loss of "their Kroger".  Surely the City must have been aware of the situation.

I say this, why hasn't the City of Ann Arbor done something to protect area residents from the disastrous effects of what has been happening for years?  Doesn't the City have layer upon layer of oversight and regulation for the beloved "historic neighborhoods" and the cherished downtown area?  There are rules and regulations galore that prevent people from taking steps deemed unacceptable by the local power brokers and residents of these areas. Why aren't the residents of the Georgetown Mall area just as entitled to City protection? The abandonment of the Georgetown Mall by the previous businesses was inevitable. The lack of cooperation on the part of the owner was painfully obvious and inexcusable. Why didn't the City step in and protect the area residents the same way they do elsewhere?  The last time I looked I think we are all paying the same millage. Do the tax dollars collected downtown entitle those people any more protection than the residents of Georgetown receive?

Could not the local authorities have stepped in years ago and required the owner to maintain the property to some reasonable standard?  Now that the property is in foreclosure it is probably too late but this is a huge section of land, at least by my standards, and its future impacts the residents at a number of levels.  Who makes up the loss in tax revenue as this prime real estate becomes blighted?  Who compensates neighboring residents for the loss in value of their homes as a result of this entire mess?

Could the City have forced action and placed a lien on the property if reasonable steps were not taken? If the sidewalk in front of my house needs repair I can darn sure count on the City enforcing the regulations, and that isn't even my property!  Anyway you cut it, the City should not allow the area to become blighted due to the poor management of the asset by an investor who only wanted to take money out and not put anything back.