The inside of the old Harrison High School building looks brand new.
About a month ahead of its opening, The Hawk in Farmington Hills is just about ready to welcome the public. The three-story building will serve as a recreation, arts and community gathering center.
According to Farmington Hills special services director, Ellen Schnackel, the city is hoping to open The Hawk, near 12 Mile and Middlebelt, in early June.
Farmington Hills bought the old Harrison school, which was originally built in the 1970s, in late 2018 after the school district decided to close the facility due to declining enrollment. Since then, community input and a growing need for a large recreation center have fueled the development.
Outdoor dining at one of downtown Farmington s most prominent eateries could see a major change.
The city s planning commission recently reviewed and recommended for approval plans to enclose the outdoor patio at Los Tres Amigos, 33200 Grand River Ave. The plans call for a structure to enclose the current outdoor patio, which would also include glass windows that could slide open during warmer weather months. The owner came to me and wanted to enclose his patio to make it a year-round patio to dine, said Mark Fineout, an Okemos-based architect working on the project. At that point, we designed the structure to make it look like a patio that was enclosed.
How increasing property values help revitalize downtown Farmington
In small cities like Farmington, the downtown is everything. The small, 2.7 square mile community uses its popular downtown to draw in residents and visitors for meals at independent restaurants, movies at the charming Civic Theater and getting fresh air at Riley Park.
The downtown development authority, or DDA, is financed through property taxes. As property values rise, some of the extra tax revenue is funneled to the DDA through tax increment financing (TIF) to help keep the place thriving.
“It’s been a highly effective means to reinvest in our downtown, Kate Knight, Farmington s DDA director, said.