St. John/Borders Open House Draws Questions

The open house hosted Thursday by St. John Providence officials in the former Borders building drew City of Grosse Pointe residents, fellow Village business owners and other community members. 

Health system officials estimated turnout to be anywhere from 75 to 200 people. Numerous health system officials, including administration and board members were on hand to answer questions of the public in a one-on-one format.

The intention of the open house was not only to answer questions of the public but also to provide health system employees with a gauge on the community's reception and concerns about their plans for the currently vacant building that formerly housed Borders Books, spokeswoman Sara E. Brown previously told Patch.

St. John Providence Health System has worked out a purchase agreement for the building contingent upon city council approval for an area variance for usage of the building that will include some retail but also healthcare. The investment into the building by St. John is estimated to be about $5.4 million, Brown previously told Patch. 

Two main themes surfaced, which health system officials anticipated beforehand: urgent care and property taxes, said Robert E. Hoban, President of Care Continuum for St. John Providence Health System.

The first concern was easy to squelch, he said, because it is not part of the plan. When St. John officials first began looking for an off-site location for house its outpatient physical therapy, they considered having an urgent-care facility, he said. 

However, after gaining feedback within the community from residents, officials discovered urgent care was not a possibility, Hoban said. "They absolutely said no," Hoban said. 

The space within the building originally slated for urgent care is now designed for a private practice doctor's office, Hoban said, explaining officials are hopeful and confident they will be able to get a practice specializing in women's health.

The second concern, property taxes, is one that is still being handled, Hoban said. As the potential owner of a large building in a retail district, Hoban said he fully understands why the City and residents would expect St. John to pay taxes. 

The health system is a non-profit but is working with the city to work out an arrangement to pay a fee in lieu of taxes. 

"We want to pay our fair share here," Hoban said. "It's not equitable otherwise."

The plan, which still must receive approval from the City of Grosse Pointe council later this month, includes two small retail storefronts facing Kercheval Avenue--one about 1,700 square-feet and one about 1,300 square-feet. 

City council members already have the proposed plans and will make a decision May 13. The sale of the building, which has been vacant since April 2011 when Borders closed, is contingent upon city council's approval.

Hoban said he and other officials are not coming to the table with a set-in-stone plan but realize there will be a need to negotiate and compromise in certain areas. 

St. John Providence is seeking an area variance for the building, which means they want to have an exception made for much of the 19,800 square-foot building as it relates to zoning. 

The building is currently slated for retail. The health system wants to use a small portion of the building for retail in keeping with the Village focus but will use the majority for health care services. 

Generally the City wants to see 60 percent of a building being used for retail, whereas the proposed plans call for about 15 percent to be used for retail, Hoban said. 

While health system officials are willing to reach a compromise, Hoban said if the requirement of the City ends up being 55 to 60 percent of the building, they will have to reconsider the purchase. 

The business is healthcare and if that much of the building is devoted to retail, the business changes, Hoban said, explaining he knows the health system can make the healthcare portion of the building successful and financially stable whereas the retail portion is less stable. 

"It's taking a lot more risk," Hoban said.

The goal of St. John is to offer patients a more convenient location for services that do not require them to travel to the main hospital, which is a large campus. Officials had been looking for an off-site location for outpatient physical therapy for a few years, Hoban said.

Before making the decision about the former Borders building, Hoban said about half-a-dozen other properties within the Pointes were considered. They did not look at the former Borders building as soon as it became available but began considering it about a year after it stood vacant.

Now the building has been vacant for two years and Hoban said he believes the health system would make a good addition to the Village. The healthcare portion would be more behind-the-scenes because of the backdoor entrance and the maintained retail spaces on Kercheval Avenue. 

Additionally, it would draw more foot traffic to the Village, he said, noting the projections to be about 20,000 visits annually.