Settlement proposed between Detroit and failed Herman Kiefer developer
A New York developer who failed to redevelop Detroit's abandoned Herman Kiefer hospital campus could be given nine months to find someone else interested in buying and developing the sprawling 38-acre site. Detroit City Council is scheduled to consider at its Tuesday, Nov. 10, meeting a settlement deal with the developer, Ron Castellano, who paid $925,000 to the city in 2018 for ownership of the empty hospital campus, plus two nearby former Detroit public schools buildings. Under the proposed settlement, Castellano would be given until August 2027 to find a buyer for the campus — with the stipulation that the future buyer and his or her own redevelopment plans for the site get approved by the city. If no buyer is found, Castellano's limited liability companies would need to transfer ownership of the campus properties and the former Detroit public schools, Hutchins and Crosman schools, back to the city. In exchange, the city would then cut him a check for the $925,000 he originally paid. Also included in the original deal was control of 115 then-vacant houses in the surrounding Virginia Park neighborhood, which Castellano was to get at the discount price of $500 to $1,000 apiece, plus numerous vacant
