Our Projects

72 Grandville Ave. SW
For Lease
Call for rent incentives!

600 Monroe NW
Monroe Terrace
Office condominium new build-out

2000 Oak Industrial Drive
Former Thornapple Valley Plant
New Construction in Renaissance Zone

168 Louis Campus
Louis Campau Promenade
Project renovation/condominium conversion

Terra Firma Development specializes in real estate development in West Michigan. Since 1996, we have been building new facilities and re-developing and renovating historic structures, helping to re-establish vitality and growth - as well as providing cool places for people to work and live.

Historic Renovation
Terra Firma initially focused on industrial property development, but began to see the need for the rehabilitation of large commercial buildings.

We noticed that many older urban areas have lost and continue to lose population, employment opportunities, private investment and tax base. The goals of our projects include increasing the desirability and benefits of a walkable, compact, mixed-use, mixed-income, racially diverse and livable urban neighborhoods.

After buying and selling some smaller properties, our first significant project was the renovation of the Brass Works Building; a dilapidated 1900s factory consisting of 200,000 square feet located in what was then a "fringe" neighborhood of Grand Rapids. The building is now 100% occupied by loft-office tenants.

The Brass Works Building renovation received an Economic Development Award from the City of Grand Rapids, and is regarded as the brightest example of neighborhood revitalization in our market.

Renaissance Zones
Working with the State of Michigan, we helped create two new Renaissance Zones in the city of Grand Rapids. Renaissance Zones are areas where most state and local taxes are forgiven for 15 years; they are designed to revitalize difficult-to-develop urban and rural areas. Our renovations in the Renaissance Zones led to the creation of more than 100 jobs and over $60,000,000 of investment by ourselves and others.

Tax Incentive Programs
Terra Firma Development has procured tax credits from various federal, state and local municipalities for re-development projects including:

• Grants from the City of Grand Rapids under the BRIP (building re-use incentive program).

• The New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program - This program allows taxpayers to receive a credit against Federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments in designated Community Development Entities (CDEs). The qualified equity investment is used by the CDE to provide investments in low-income communities.
  To learn more about the program, see the CDFI Web site.
  

• Federal Investment Tax Credit: 10-20% of all qualified renovation expenses can be claimed by the investor on their personal tax return. This program encourages investment in older structures and can be utilized by the developer or sold to various credit buyers. Additionally, they can be pledged as equity to collateralize debt.

• SBT Brownfield Credits: These credits are earned at 10% of the value of the investments made on contaminated property. Again, these may be utilized by the developer, assigned to the Tenant as incentive to Lease space or packaged and sold to third parties.