Mighty Marysville cleanup still on schedule

Dawn Valko has a front row seat to the cleanup of the former Mighty Marysville.

“I’ve been watching it for so long, it’s amazing how fast they’re going,” the office assistant at Allstate Insurance on Busha Highway said.

It’s been four months since the massive former DTE power plant was imploded along the banks of the St. Clair River. Since then, heavy equipment has been working through the mountain of rubble left from the imploded 12-story plant.

The property is expected to be development ready by the start of 2017.

Thousands gather for Mighty Marysville implosion

And Randy Fernandez, Marysville city manager, expects crews to finish the cleanup by the end of the year.

“It will take a good nine to 12 months to clean up the rubble, but they are working on it diligently,” Fernandez said. “When you drive by, you can see the pile is going down. They are on schedule, but it will take most of 2016 to complete.”

Crews began to dismantle the plant in spring 2014 to make way for new development at the site. Commercial Development Company purchased the plant from DTE Energy in May 2014.

The Missouri-based property owner is responsible for or finding another party to redevelop the property.

“City administration is working with (Commercial Development Company) to look for developers so we have something in place going into 2017,” Fernandez said. “We want to see tangible results as soon as we can.”

The Mighty Marysville operated from 1922 through 2001. It was decommissioned in 2011.

The implosion was watched by thousands of people along both sides of the river Nov. 7.

Marysville unveiled conceptual plans for the nearly 30-acre site in October, which included a multi-floor hotel, condominium housing, shops, outdoor seating, a park and riverfront promenade.

Fernandez said that concept is still the focus of their search.

“We would hope to find an investor with a vision that matches ours in a perfect world,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we are looking for a tax base and jobs that will not only benefit Marysville, but the whole St. Clair County region, so we are open to other visions.”

Fernandez said while he is not at liberty to say what companies and investors the city has met with yet, he did say multiple meetings have been set up. Companies the city has reached out to have spanned from locally owned entities to out-of-state companies.

“We are talking to businessmen throughout the country and networking and making cold calls,” he said. “We want to have something set up by the end of the year and, once we do, we will be very transparent with announcements. Until then, it’s just about finding that one company, or multiple companies, that have deep pockets and want to make this happen.”

Mighty Marysville over the years

Valko said she’s enjoying being able to see points of the river from her desk, but she’s excited to see what will come to the property.

“I’m interested to see what they finally do with the land there and what goes up,” she said. “Hopefully, it will be good for Marysville.”

Contact Nicole Hayden at (810) 989-6279 or nhayden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @nicoleandpig.