Ann Arbor Construction updates

[deja vu]

Not exactly the most inspiring name, but it works. The building will be called "The Pavilion at University of Michigan Health." I would love to see progress photos of this, if anyone can get them or find them -

Michigan Medicine announces name for new $920 million facility
Samuel Dodge | MLive
June 14, 2021

[DetroitSky]

Former Lucky's Market in Ann Arbor to be redeveloped into 4M City Club

A market that closed in early 2020 will be redeveloped into a coworking and event space. Prentice 4M, who recently opened a coliving, coworking development, is turning the former Lucky's Market into 4M City Club, a venue that will also offer food and drink options.

It's situated close to the 4M campus, adding more options for what they're hoping will be a 15-minute neighborhood, where the community is close enough to walk or bike to their daily needs. It's located along the May Mobility route, along with nearby bus routes.

Synecdoche Design Studio of Ann Arbor will design the 25,000-square-foot 4M City Club space. Along with indoor and outdoor flex spaces for community use, the space will include:

A commercial kitchen, the Commissary at 4M City Club, with five regional chefs preparing food for take-out,
A full-service bar, Lucky’s BAR at 4M City Club, with craft cocktails, beer, and wine, as well as an early morning barista service,
And the Market at 4M City Club with prepared foods and retail beer and wine.

[deja vu]

The new Central Campus Classroom Building and Alexander G. Ruthven Renovation project is getting close to completion, at U of M. The original Ruthven building was built in 1928 and designed by Albert Kahn. HED collaborated with The S/L/A/M Collaborative for the new design work. At 100,000 SF of renovation, 34,000 SF of demolition (of a 1964 addition), & 135,000 of addition, and with a $150 million construction budget, this project is nothing to sneeze at. The project aims to address three challenges:

1. Lack of large-format instructional space (on central / historic campus).
2. What to do with a historic and beloved structure in need of reimagining and repurposing?
3. Disconnect of university leadership and administration from the campus and student population.

The new addition will provide large-format, active learning classrooms and a large auditorium to serve a projected capacity of 10,000 students daily, while the historic Albert Kahn portion will house dry laboratory computational research space, a large multipurpose room, and administrative space to house the university’s central administration that is currently located in the Fleming Administration Building.

This is a tough design that had to respond to a variety of contexts and building styles, and I think it looks great.


Source: U of M


Source: HED


Source: U of M


Source: U of M

[Rizzo]

This building ended up disappointing. I mean the renderings never seemed that impressive. I get that they’re trying to tie some of the materials together with the original building but it’s all really clunky. I expected better for one of the most prominent corners on campus

[deja vu]

Our family is in Ann Arbor right now for an indefinite period of time. Unfortunately, our daughter (our first child, born last week) is in the NICU at the UofM Mott Children's Hospital. The good news is she's doing better now, and when I find little bits of down time, I can walk around and look at buildings and clear my mind.

Originally Posted by Rizzo

This building ended up disappointing. I mean the renderings never seemed that impressive. I get that they’re trying to tie some of the materials together with the original building but it’s all really clunky. I expected better for one of the most prominent corners on campus

I think the Central Campus Classroom Building looks a little better in-person. I walked by it earlier today (it is very close to the Medical Center). Admittedly, it is no showstopper. It is kind of bland. But that might not be the worst thing. If it was too classy, it might contrast too much with its flashy neighbor: the far-more impressive-looking Biological Sciences Building (last two photos) -













I'll post more updates as I have time / energy. I have been taking a lot of photos of all of the current / recently-completed projects around A2.

[DetroitSky]

Deja vu, congrats on the baby! Hopefully she gets better soon.

Looking forward to more AA updates!

[deja vu]

Originally Posted by DetroitSky

Deja vu, congrats on the baby! Hopefully she gets better soon.

Looking forward to more AA updates!

Thank you! Things are getting better each day; she's a fighter, like her mother. We feel like we can breathe a little bit more easily. We are in really good hands here.

Being at the Children's Hospital also affords a great view of the new U-M Adult Hospital tower that recently broke ground. It is still mostly a hole in the ground; but there is a lot of earth moving and foundation work ongoing. They have also begun erecting the tower crane. I think it will be a 10-story tower when compete -

[Thirteen Mile]

Originally Posted by DetroitSky

Deja vu, congrats on the baby! Hopefully she gets better soon.

Looking forward to more AA updates!

Yes can’t be easy multitasking everything you want to accomplish with a young fam but thank you again we’ve been starved for A2 updates for a while!

[deja vu]

Originally Posted by Thirteen Mile

Yes can’t be easy multitasking everything you want to accomplish with a young fam but thank you again we’ve been starved for A2 updates for a while!

Right? It's about time we had some on-the-ground photos of all the construction happening. AA feels very different from the last time I was here.

Here's The Standard - off-campus student housing coming in 2022. They are currently working on floors 6/7 (of 10). This is located across the street from Ashley Mews, and just barely within sight of the Big House, at E Williams and S Main Streets.














Source: MSC

[deja vu]

Hoover+Greene, from today -



Pool Deck -













Bonus shot of the U-M Marching Band practicing next door (I couldn't get a good angle though b/c I was driving) -

[deja vu]

Here's how it's looking around S. University... from a few days ago, with students moving in -

Vic Village North (completed 2019) -





Vic Village South is still mostly just a cleared area. I'm not sure if there is some sort of delay, because the site is pretty silent. Six11 is adjacent to this site (completed 2018), and Zaragon Place (2009) beyond that -



You can see Landmark (completed 2012) in the distance. University Towers to the left -





Zaragon Place, with Six11 peaking through, dwarf these detached homes (this view reminds me a little of the Pixar movie, Up). How long will these houses survive?



Here's another view of Six11, from an alley, with Pinball Pete's in-view -



Sterling Arbor Blu (2016) with Six 11 adjacent, and Vic Village North beyond that, on the other side of University -



Lastly, I walked past Landmark (completed 2012), which in my opinion looks tacky as hell, like a suburban shopping mall -

[Rizzo]

Some of those turned out much better than I expected. It all feels totally different from 15 years ago back when off campus living was crappy converted houses. You might of known only 1 person who lived in a nicer apartment in a highrise. There’s like hundreds of units here. Can’t imagine what it costs for a place.

Edit: Just checked. More than $1000 “per person”. I guess it’s not horrible considering a 1 bedroom in a vintage building cost about that much in the mid 2000’s. Granted you had the place to yourself, but here everything is new with amenities and probably not that bad sharing a large apartment.

[sentinel]

I don't even recognize AA anymore; so so much has changed since I lived there 19-20 years ago, it's wonderful.

[deja vu]

Here's a more-random smattering of things I photographed while walking around. Some old, some new -

Nathan Burnham House, located along the edge of the Arb. near the medical center. Built c. 1834-1836 -



The C.S. Mott Children's Hospital & Von Voigtlander Women's Hospital, completed in late 2011 and about to celebrate it's 10-year anniversary (also, our family's short-term home). HKS was the architect -





The $10 million Detroit Observatory upgrade + addition is nearly complete (the original building was completed in 1854 and is the University's second-oldest remaining building). Architect is HED, read more about it here -



Central plant expansion / upgrades -



Graduate Ann Arbor - formerly Campus Inn(615 E. Huron St.), renovation completed 2016 -



Hub Ann Arbor (603 E. Huron St.), completed 2018. Note, it did not appear to be aging very well, with numerous signs of water infiltration and masonry damage. The windows could use a good cleaning too -



Foundry Lofts (413 E. Huron St.), completed 2016 -



The Varsity (425 E. Washington St.), completed 2013 -



The Varsity and YOUnion (411 E. Washington St.), completed 2008, remodeled 2019 (previously known as 4Eleven Lofts) -



Justice Center & City Hall, completed 2011 -



The E. Huron skyline, as viewed from the City Hall green roof -



Some more skyline views, from the top of the Fourth and William parking structure -

[deja vu]

(continued)

The Yard on South Main, completed 2018 -



618 S. Main, completed 2015 and located right across from The Yard -



University Towers, where my dad once lived when he was a student here -



UMMA Frankel Wing, completed 2009. Allied Works Architecture designed the addition -





The original portion -



The former University Natural History Museum (Alexander G. Ruthven Building), now being remodeled & repurposed -



Another view of the new Biological Sciences Building -



UM School of Dentistry, with some remodel work ongoing, at least outside (couldn't go in) -



Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library -



The sun setting on a quiet Nickels Arcade -





College of LS&A Addition, designed by Smithgroup, completed 2021 -

[deja vu]

The Standard -

Concrete pours are happening at level 7. It looks like some of the steel framing has already reached level 10. As usual, a pretty good photo update being shared by Spence Brothers -


















Source: LinkedIn | Spence Brothers

[deja vu]

This is a neat article on the recently-completed offices for Clinc AI in Ann Arbor, including some compelling before and after photos. Synecdoche Design Studio was the architect -

Creative Office Revamp Combines Barn, Café and Roof Deck
Joe Beeton | LoopNet
September 14, 2021

[deja vu]

Hourly bus trips between Detroit & Ann Arbor are returning -

Detroit-to-Ann Arbor bus service to resume Oct. 18
Charles E. Ramirez | The Detroit News
September 21, 2021

An express bus service that takes passengers from Detroit to Ann Arbor will resume next month, officials said Tuesday. The service will return Oct. 18 after it was halted in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is provided by a partnership between the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan said the Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority...

[deja vu]

Here's an MLive article, featuring a bunch of photos of the Hoover + Greene project. It looks good, I just wonder, why would they go with such a pronounced black & orange color scheme, when they are just a few blocks away from the maize & blue Big House and trying to market to college students? Are there a lot of Oklahoma State transfers at U of M?

See inside new upscale apartments overlooking Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor
Ryan Stanton | MLive
October 22, 2021

Source: MLive | Jacob Hamilton

[DetroitSky]

Sounds like a cool little project:

New owner plans to restore former Treasure Mart building to 1861 appearance, install additions

ANN ARBOR, MI -- An Ann Arbor church has plans to restore the former Treasure Mart building to its historic appearance as it renovates the former store to become its new location.

Redeemer Ann Arbor, a nondenominational church currently at 611 ½ East William St., purchased the 529 Detroit St. building in July 2020 for a little more than $2 million, with plans to convert the space into a new church location, according to public records.

Proposals submitted to the Ann Arbor City Council show the church plans to restore the building to its original appearance when it was built in 1861, including reconstructing the original upper wood cornice and repairing changes and damage to the brick walls.

It also plans to reinstall barn-type doors that had been changed to large windows and repaint the building.

The carport, which plans submitted to the city say is not original to the building, will be demolished to make room for a new main entryway. An existing office addition will also see a second floor, with plans to build a lobby addition with two floors and a basement on the north side of the building.