Madison’s Board of Estimates sparred during its meeting Monday night over development plans for the abandoned Garver Feed Mill on the edge of the Olbrich Botanical Gardens.
Registered as a historic landmark, the Garver Feed Mill was built in 1905. Since the mill was deeded to the city of Madison in 1996, several plans to restore the Garver Feed Mill ultimately fell through due to poor fundraising.
The city recently granted plans to restore the mill to Baum Development, which aims to renovate the building as an artisan food production facility and add a series of energy efficient micro-lodges on the land around the mill.
However, Dimension Development is working on an alternative to the Baum plan with Alternative Continuum of Care, LLC., which would turn the Garver Feed Mill into age-restricted housing, featuring both independent and assisted living facilities.
Representatives of Dimension Development expressed concern regarding the timeline for how long they will stay on the project without a commitment from the city.
“If the decision is made too late in 2015 to switch from the primary proposal to the secondary, the secondary proposal might not be viable,” said Tom Landgraf, a member of Dimension Development’s management team. “We can’t always show up as number two and be expected to cross the finish line.”
According to Ald. David Ahrens, District 15, prioritizing the Baum plan is socially irresponsible for the community.
“We didn’t ask what the … civic value was of this proposal,” Ahrens said. “What we have before us is a food processing plant and micro-lodges, or an innovative and socially necessary project for an assisted living center.”
Other members were skeptical of Ahrens, believing the Baum plan represented the community’s priorities.
“The Garver Committee, made up of Madison residents who voted in one specific way, were demonstrating a majority interest in [the Baum] proposal based on community priorities,” said Ald. Larry Palm, District 12.
