The Chelsea Standard
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Our history
Local group continues fight to preserve buildings of former Federal Screw Works
By Janet Bernathand Fritz Wagner, Special Writers
PUBLISHED: February 21, 2008
We both grew up in Chelsea, and it is gratifying to see that our hometown has continued to be the special place that nurtured us in our formative years. The Feb. 7 edition of The Chelsea Standard heralded the many honors bestowed upon Chelsea — best affordable suburb in Michigan by Business Week; best small library in the nation by the Library Journal; one of the top hospitals in the nation; one of the top school districts in the state, to name a few. These accolades are well deserved and a tribute to our visionary leadership.
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It would be easy to rest on these honors.
Fortunately, the Downtown Development District ( DDA) and City Council urge us forward by holding a second "visioning" session to think of what Chelsea can become in the future. Meanwhile, the Planning Commission has been hard at work refining the draft of the new Master Plan. The draft plan identifies the Federal Screw Works (FSW) site as mixed use for redevelopment when the factory is no longer viable. The new owner of the FSW site, Magellan Development Company, will return to the Planning Commission with a Planned Unit Development (PUD) plan for mixed use redevelopment—a combination of retail, commercial and some second floor residential.
Throughout the draft of the Master Plan, our architecturally and historically significant buildings are referred to as important assets for our community. Clearly, the concept of "Chelsea as a destination" benefits our local economy. In addition, our old buildings help create a strong sense of community. Our unique downtown coupled with the McKune Memorial Library and Clocktower Complex are excellent examples.
Presently, Magellan Development Company owns the FSW site and plans on demolishing the entire site, including two offices buildings attached to the factory complex. These office buildings have architectural value and historical significance as emblems of almost a century of manufacturing in our community. Magellan has cited soil contamination throughout the FSW site as a reason for demolition of all the buildings.
However, Larry Bean, a Chelsea resident and a hydrogeologist with 19 years of experience dealing with contaminants in sediments and groundwater reads the evidence of the levels of contamination differently. As a member of "Citizens to Keep FSW Heritage," Larry evaluated a copy of the Baseline Environmental Assessment for the FSW site on file with the Michigan Department of Environmental Qualtiy (DEQ).
To quote Larry's assessment: "The DEQ will not require the demolition of the buildings as a result of this contamination ."
We view the FSW site as both a challenge and an opportunity for keeping our unique heritage and continuing to build on Chelsea's recent accolades.
As two members of "Citizens to Keep FSW Heritage," we urge Magellan Development Company to rehabilitate and adaptively reuse the two office buildings on the FSW site. These buildings can be reused, and a creative architect can make this work for the developer if assigned to do so. It is simply a matter of wanting to do it, and we urge the developer to care about our heritage. The developer is getting the zoning change it is requesting and the community should get the two unique buildings rehabilitated and adaptively reused in exchange for approval of the Planned Unit Development (PUD) by the Planning Commission and City Council.
As members of "Citizens to Keep FSW Heritage," we recognize the importance of redeveloping the FSW site into Chelsea's economy. Demolishing the entire site and replacing the office buildings, so symbolic of Chelsea's heritage, with generic new construction will not lead to the best long-term benefits for our community. Incorporating the existing two office buildings into the redevelopment of the FSW will increase the charm and unique ambience of our community.
We celebrate what a dynamic and special place Chelsea has become since our childhoods. We hope that the developer will follow the positive stewardship of Chelsea's heritage and the leadership by his father, Dr. Michael Papo, in founding the Chelsea Community Hospital. If we tear down our old and historic buildings, we erase our past. By doing so, we will lose our unique sense of place. It can never be replaced.
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