[DetroitMan]

Originally Posted by deja vu

Mid-50's, sunny skies, dreams of spring... it all adds up to a long walk around town for some construction updates...

We start with the big one - the event center -

















Nearby, the former McDonalds site is cleared (awaiting county development) -



...and this other long-vacant, mid-century commercial structure has also been wiped away, right near the future arena. No plans yet for the lot (that I'm aware of) -



Nearby, the residential portion of Iron Works appears done and occupied -





Mt. Zion Senior Living / Ecumenical Senior Center (Northside) - 3 separate buildings -









River's Edge apartments -





K-College's new dorm -



...and WMU's new valley dorm -




Overall, there's no denying the growing density in Kalamazoo. The uptick in new housing construction is especially noticeable. There is an energy of change in the air. Lots of construction noise that should only continue, and with it, the promise of new opportunities and new challenges.

Excellent update Deja Vu! It's really nice to see the transformation of Kalamazoo. I really do wonder what the downtown core will look like in the next 5-10 years. Have there been any rumblings of new hotels being proposed because of the Event Center?

Also, a little bit of Battle Creek development news. Yesterday it was announced that the old KMart in Battle Creek will be redeveloped into 80 apartments

Vacant Michigan Kmart site will be redeveloped into 80 apartments in $30.5M project

It’ll take $30.5 million to turn a vacant Kmart site into a 5-acre hub for housing and child care in Battle Creek. The “Blue Light” project will add 80 apartments to 200 Capital Ave. in downtown Battle Creek, per a governor’s office press release. The new four-story building will offer 48 low-income and 32 to workforce apartment units to renters earning 80% to 120% of the area median income.

Plans also include a single-story commercial building to house a new child care center, per the release.

https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo...m-project.html