ALPENA TOWNSHIP — After nearly four hours of presentations, public comment, and discussion during a public hearing on Monday night, the Alpena Township Planning Commission unanimously approved a special use permit that will clear the way for the sale of the Alpena Mall to a local manufacturing hub.

The hub, called I2P, has had a purchase agreement in place with the current mall owner and intends to convert the mall into a mixed-use facility that will be used for storage, light manufacturing, and office space. I2P is currently housed in the former Kmart building across U.S.-23 from the mall.

Currently, there are about 20 tenants in the mall, most of which are on month-to-month leases. They’ll have to renew leases with retail market rates after the first of the year, or move on. Stores that have longer leases will remain open until the leases expire.

I2P hasn’t discussed new leases with the tenants because it can’t until the sale is finalized.

Township Trustee Normi Poli said the Planning Commission weighed all comment for and against the project and, in the end, took the right action.

“There was a lot of discussion that went back and forth, but I think the end result is the right decision was made,” Poli said. “Everybody had a lot of good input and a good outcome. Now, everybody needs to move forward.”

I2P representative Bill Yaklin told the commission that there will be little change to the exterior of the building and limited changes indoors. He said the company still wants to have a retail presence in the mall, but would like new tenants to be in line with what the mission of the company is, which is to provide companies who have innovative products a chance to get them to market.

Yaklin also told commissioners that the mall is only a small piece of the overall puzzle right now and that the projected growth of the company would require it to secure three more properties the size of the mall.

The company produces material handling equipment and has run out of room at the former Kmart site and needs to expand. There are also several other businesses at the former big-box retail store that are growing at a significant rate, Yaklin said.

Planning Commission Chairman Tom Hilberg said the mall means a lot to people in Alpena, but the board had to look at retail trends and what the future of the mall may look like in a few years.

One of the mall’s anchor tenants, J.C. Penney, is in the process of closing, which could significantly reduce foot traffic for the other stores at the mall.

Hilberg said that, if the mall were forced to close, as many others around the country have, it could sit empty and unused for many years, which is not ideal.

Hilberg said he hopes I2P is able to grow as it predicts and that new jobs become a reality. He said those are good-paying jobs that will provide more disposable income that will be spent in stores and restaurants, which could make Alpena attractive to developers in the future.

“Those new jobs could make Alpena a place where retailers want to come and bring more young families to the area,” he said. “I think the right decision was made.”

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.