A development project at the former site of the St. Vincent and Sarah Fisher Center was recently recommended to Farmington Hills’ City Council. Development could begin this year.
By: Mark Vest | Farmington Press | Published January 6, 2025
FARMINGTON HILLS — A property that has historical significance in the city of Farmington Hills is one step closer to potentially being redeveloped.
The St. Vincent and Sarah Fisher Center was located on the northwest corner of 12 Mile and Inkster roads for approximately 75 years before relocating to Detroit more than 15 years ago.
Since then, the center site, which housed mothers and children in need, has been vacant, with no offers for the property coming to fruition.
Robertson Brothers Homes, which builds townhomes, condominiums and single-family homes, is hoping to change that.
After listening to details about a planned unit development proposal at a Farmington Hills Planning Commission meeting Dec. 19, Planning Commission members unanimously approved Robertson Brothers’ requested action of recommending the proposal to Farmington Hills’ City Council.
Tim Loughrin, who is the vice president of land acquisition for Robertson Brothers, anticipates that the proposal could go before City Council sometime in February.
If all goes well, according to Loughrin, land development could begin sometime in the middle of the year.
According to Loughrin, the site is 30.4 gross acres.
Robertson Brothers is proposing to develop 75 detached ranch condominium units and four single-family homes, with the condominiums expected to be between 1,850 and 2,100 square feet.
The single-family homes are expected to be between 2,000 and 3,000 square feet.
Loughrin discussed the appeal of developing on the site.
“Finding a site that’s large enough with nice, open space to work with was very appealing,” he said. “Every city in southeast Michigan is in need of this type of housing and Farmington Hills is a great spot to have these homes as an option (for) buyers. It was a combination of the site having as much open space as it has, and the layout is ideal for what we were looking for. But also, being able to be in Farmington Hills and provide a site large enough to provide this is what was exciting for us.”
Although Loughrin isn’t sure of the exact number, he said that there are multiple existing buildings on the site.
According to him, Robertson Brothers received approval from the Historic District Commission to remove all of them with the exception of a chapel that is on the site.
“That’s part of the story of the property, so not only are we saving the chapel and rehabbing it, we’re also saving a lot of elements,” Loughrin said. “There’s some gates and fencing at the corner of 12 Mile and Inkster that we’ll be saving and retaining. There’ll be some reuse of some materials from the buildings that are being removed that we’ll be incorporating into the project, such as on our signage walls and that sort of thing, and then we’ll be providing some historical markers for the history, so I think it’s important to retain that for the community.”
Evangelical Homes of Michigan, which is a nonprofit, is listed as the owner of the property.
At press time, no representatives from the organization had responded to opportunities to comment.
Inquiries about the purchase price of the property were also not responded to by press time.
Loughrin said that the units would have two bedrooms with a den. He expects pricing to start at the mid-$500,000 range.
A previous proposal for the property was made in 2022, when Optalis Healthcare, which develops buildings for rehabilitation and nursing homes, was set to occupy the south part of the property, with Robertson Brothers developing condominiums on the north side of the property. However, that proposal did not come to fruition.
“We’re now in control of the entire site and we’re proposing detached ranch condominium homes,” Loughrin said.
At the Planning Commission meeting, there was some discussion among Planning Commission members about the possibility of having lots for three single-family homes, as opposed to the four that were proposed. However, after Loughrin, who spoke at the meeting, made it clear that it’s important that four lots remain part of the plan and that in his estimation that is an appropriate number, he was supported.
“We got a project, probably the best we’ve seen on this property, and this has been going on for much of my stint here on the Planning Commission,” Planning Commissioner Dale Countegan said. “I think it’s a pretty good plan, so I support the four lots.”
Planning Commissioner Marisa Varga made the motion to recommend the proposal to City Council.
“The plans are consistent with the goals, objectives and policies of the master plan,” Varga said.
From Loughrin’s perspective, the project is positive for the community.
“There’s almost 50% open space,” he said. “We’ve got the rehabbed chapel building, which will be a community building, and lots of open space and natural areas. It’s a beautiful site plan.”