The Escanaba City Council on Thursday approved Spaulding Real Estate's request to establish Obsolete Property Rehabilitation District No. 29 to rehabilitate what used to be Crispigna’s Restaurant, 1213 Ludington St., into a cocktail lounge. (Sophie Vogelmann | Daily Press)

ESCANABA – The Escanaba City Council has approved plans to establish Obsolete Property Rehabilitation District No. 29 and the OPRA exemption for Spaulding Real Estate LLC to rehabilitate what used to be Crispigna’s Restaurant into a cocktail lounge. 

The move will allow Spaulding Real Estate to enroll in the OPRA, which would provide partial exemption of property taxes for a specified period for certain types of property improvements. Spaulding Real Estate will proceed with its ORPA application to the state, which must be filed by the end of the month.  

“The State Tax Commission (STC) is responsible for final approval and issuance of OPRA certificates. Exemptions are not effective until approved by the STC,” states the Michigan Department of Treasury’s website.  

The OPRA exemption would last up to 12 years beginning Dec. 30 of this year and ending Dec. 30, 2037. 

The total cost for the rehabilitation at 1213 Ludington St. is projected to be $761,844.45, as estimated by Jon Gartland, project manager and estimator from Roy Ness Contracting & Sales Inc. 

“The building will be converted to a high-end martini lounge serving specialized martinis, high-end cocktails and beer. It will also feature to complement the lounge, high-end appetizers,” Curt Spaulding wrote in a letter that was part of the OPRA application. 

Spaulding and his wife, Kelly, as well as the property assessor, Crystal Martin, attended Thursday night’s meeting to address the council and answer any questions. 

The Spaulding couple also have owned local bar and eatery Cat-man-do’s at 1223 Ludington St. for about 10 years. 

In other news, the council:

— Approved Bay Electric of Dollar Bay to conduct arc flash studies for the Water and Wastewater Departments. Arc flash studies will assess the risk of arc flash incidents in the facility, among other project details such as determining incident energy at each fault location. These studies have been budgeted for $50,500, including $3,000 in contingency money. Per the bid proposal, Bay Electric will start in December and complete the work in January. 

— Authorized an agreement with the Delta-Menominee-Schoolcraft Community Action Agency to lease space in the Catherine Bonifas Civic Center, 225 N. 21st St., for $19,800 a year. The agency will occupy several rooms for uses that include the Senior Citizens Center’s director’s office, a computer room, an activities room, a client service room, an Adult Day Services Memory Care space and more. The lease will last until Sept. 30, 2027.

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Sophie Vogelmann can be reached at 906-786-2021 or svogelmann@dailypress.net.