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[Southsider2k12]

https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/promine...a18e43adb5.html

Soon, Michigan City's long low-slung skyline will start to get more vertical.

The $280 million SoLa development will tower 14 stories over the Lake Michigan shoreline. Flaherty & Collins plans to build an $80 million 12-story transit-oriented development near the new South Shore Line Station.

Though neither new development will be as tall as the 22-story Spa Blu Tower at the Blue Chip Casino Hotel Spa by Trail Creek east of downtown, they will give the city's commercial district more height than the two- to three-story buildings that now line the main drag of Franklin Street.

"This is monumental. We're a small town in the Midwest and we're really punching above our weight class," Economic Development Corporation Michigan City Executive Director Clarence Hulse said.


Scott Goodman, who helped develop Fulton Market in the West Loop, McDonald's global headquarters and Google's Midwest headquarters in Chicago, is leading YAB Development Partners, which is building the 628,000-square-foot SoLa project at the You Are Beautiful site downtown. It will include two boutique hotels, a rooftop pool overlooking Lake Michigan, condos, townhomes, upscale restaurants, bars and 25,000 square feet of retail space.


"This is a legacy project," Hulse said. "We don't get to see this kind of thing very often. This is going to have a positive effect for years to come."

The project should help draw more people to the Lake Michigan shoreline, Hulse said.

"It becomes a place where you want to hang out and watch the beach from a very different setting," he said. "You don't have to go to the waterfront to enjoy it."

Visitors like to eat and shop, and the project will bring more amenities that should draw more visitors, Hulse said. It should benefit existing attractions like the Lighthouse Place Premium Outlets, the Uptown Arts District and the Blue Chip Casino.

It should, for instance. help Blue Chip lure more conventions and conferences.

"People in banking, who are federal retirees or in churches don't like to stay in casino hotels but they will have conferences there," Hulse said. "So it helps them."

[Southsider2k12]

https://www.wndu.com/2023/09/14/downtown-mi...40m-investment/

Significant changes are coming to Michigan City regarding a new development, and once built, it will give guests and residents a million-dollar view.

On Friday, the city breaks ground on a new development that includes hotel and residence space and a marketplace.

The developers of ‘SoLa,’ or South of the Lake, tell WNDU that it’s a $240 million view, as that is the price tag for this planned mixed-use development.

The SoLa development will include a 14-story 255-key hotel with a 164-unit 12-story condominium tower and will feature a rooftop swimming pool, fitness center, and spa.


The complex will also incorporate restaurants, bars, cafes, and other retail shops.

“One of the unique things about this development is its proximity; it’s so close to the Blue Chip Hotel and Casino, Lighthouse Place Premium Outlets, and Michigan City’s beautiful lakefront, which consists of a marina, beach, zoo, and surrounding green space,” said Duane Parry, mayor of Michigan City. “This is just a fabulous opportunity for Michigan City to support our new national park, the Indiana Dunes National Park.”

Indiana Dunes National Park was placed on the registry of national parks less than five years ago.

Within walking distance of downtown restaurants and shopping, and with the construction of the South Shore Double Track set to finish in 2024, this development really is in the heart of town.


“It cuts it down from about an hour and 50 minutes to just over an hour, so it’s fabulous,” Parry said. “It’s making Michigan City a bedroom community for Chicago, which I always felt it would be.”

Some residents are worried about what will happen to the “You Are Beautiful” sign on the land that is set to be developed, but Mayor Parry says the art installation will remain in Michigan City.

“No, no, we’re not going to throw it away,” Parry said. “It’s a valuable thing, and it’s got a place, just like if you watch a movie and they have the Hollywood sign, we will find a place for “You Are Beautiful” here in Michigan City that’s going to make people good being here.”

Officials expect the project to create over 800 jobs, with nearly 300 permanent jobs once SoLa is completed.