Calder PLAZA to get makeover

[discgrab21]

Has anybody been over to the plaza for food truck fridays?  Just wondering what kind of crowds congregate there when there is actually a reason to go, and how it might compare to rosa parks cir on thursdays?  Really what I'm getting at is the likelihood of realizing "if we build it, they will come"?

[GRDadof3]

11 hours ago, discgrab21 said:

Has anybody been over to the plaza for food truck fridays?  Just wondering what kind of crowds congregate there when there is actually a reason to go, and how it might compare to rosa parks cir on thursdays?  Really what I'm getting at is the likelihood of realizing "if we build it, they will come"?

I went once, there were probably 20 - 25 people out there. It was hotter than blazes with very little cover from the sun that day. 

[Jateo]

Calder plaza is a joke. Like hart plaza is in Detroit. Here is my recommendation: move the stupid orange/red art piece to Rosa parks circle area and invest in that location. Develop Calder into tall buildings and continue the current plan to add continuity into Monroe. 

[organsnyder]

Uh... welcome?

[The ATX]

On 8/29/2018 at 8:10 PM, Jateo said:

Calder plaza is a joke. Like hart plaza is in Detroit. Here is my recommendation: move the stupid orange/red art piece to Rosa parks circle area and invest in that location. Develop Calder into tall buildings and continue the current plan to add continuity into Monroe. 

If there was a developer ready to build tall buildings and only at that specific spot, I would  be all for moving it.  Otherwise, it's a great public space.

[civitas]

On 9/1/2018 at 11:15 PM, The ATX said:

If there was a developer ready to build tall buildings and only at that specific spot, I would  be all for moving it.  Otherwise, it's a great public space.

There was a guy once.....

[MJLO]

32 minutes ago, civitas said:

There was a guy once.....

Lol yes I believe this was proposed by Jack Buchanan who had shall we say "creative" proposals for financing. (Since I believe it's rude to use the term "bat **** crazy")  This was also the proposal that prompted the all wise HPC to declare the city and county buildings to be precious pieces of history that must be preserved.

[joeDowntown]

I loved the concept. The financing seemed really out of whack. And then he got involved in that shady movie credit deal out on Alpine. Does Jack Buchanan live in GR still, or did he change his identity and flee?

 I’m actually a huge fan of Calder, and mid century architecture, and I still would have no problem with them bulldozing Calder Plaza (as long as they found another place for the sculpture) and the city/county buildings (as long as the city/county didn’t get billed in the process). I doubt it will ever happen though. 

Joe

Forgot to add, he had an impressive architecture firm lined up. They’ve built some really nice high rises:

http://www.keatingarchitecture.com/projects/chronological/2013/2018

[GRDadof3]

1 hour ago, joeDowntown said:

I loved the concept. The financing seemed really out of whack. And then he got involved in that shady movie credit deal out on Alpine. Does Jack Buchanan live in GR still, or did he change his identity and flee?

 I’m actually a huge fan of Calder, and mid century architecture, and I still would have no problem with them bulldozing Calder Plaza (as long as they found another place for the sculpture) and the city/county buildings (as long as the city/county didn’t get billed in the process). I doubt it will ever happen though. 

Joe

Forgot to add, he had an impressive architecture firm lined up. They’ve built some really nice high rises:

http://www.keatingarchitecture.com/projects/chronological/2013/2018

Think he's in Colorado now?  Denver area, still developing. 

http://centennialcitizen.net/stories/littleton-village-retail-lags-homes-nearly-sold-out,251000

[Guest]

On 8/29/2018 at 9:10 PM, Jateo said:

Calder plaza is a joke. Like hart plaza is in Detroit. Here is my recommendation: move the stupid orange/red art piece to Rosa parks circle area and invest in that location. Develop Calder into tall buildings and continue the current plan to add continuity into Monroe. 

Calder and Hart Plaza can feel a little odd during 9-5 weekdays, but they are great for festivals and concerts.   DEMF is one of the best festivals in the world and there's nothing better than having it in the heart of the birthplace of techno.

City Hall just did pretty major interior renovations so I don't think they'll be going anywhere for a long time.

[x99]

On 9/1/2018 at 11:15 PM, The ATX said:

If there was a developer ready to build tall buildings and only at that specific spot, I would  be all for moving it.  Otherwise, it's a great public space.

Huh?  It's about on par with the parking lot at Woodland Mall.   And accessing the buildings on foot from Ottawa?  Very disconcerting.

[mpchicago]

Phase one of the Calder Plaza renovation is tentatively scheduled to get underway this year.   Phase one includes renovations to the SE edge of the site for a cafe and pavilion with an outdoor stage.    The DDA just hired Pioneer Construction to manage the project.   Not sure if the attached image is up to date, but it does show what appears to be a pavilion in the SE corner of the plaza.  

https://mibiz.com/sections/real-estate-development/grand-rapids-dda-selects-pioneer-construction-to-manage-calder-plaza-renovations

[Sparty97]

Any movement on this project?  Seemed to have a lot of attention for a while and then... crickets.  

[Allison Slater]

On 3/11/2021 at 1:32 PM, Sparty97 said:

Any movement on this project?  Seemed to have a lot of attention for a while and then... crickets.  

Just like Lyon square. Any bets on when whether or not we'll see announcements of a study to upgrade the plaza in 5 years, ignoring the work that was done here, like Lyon Plaza?

[Zads]

Finally, some news on the Calder Plaza redevelopment.

https://www.crainsgrandrapids.com/news/real-estate/calder-plaza-redesign-delayed-until-2026-to-coincide-with-other-city-upgrades/

[joeDowntown]

I just thought about this project the other day. Glad it’s not dead. I’d love to see some residential added close to the plaza (pipe dream, I know). The plaza makeover would make an ideal “front yard” for a building on the 5/3 parking lot.

Joe

[Prankster]

Any work they do would be lipstick on a pig. They need to completely redo it, and not just put up a splash pad, some trees and planters. 
It is the most pedestrian unfriendly part of downtown. 

[HavingAhoot]

I know its a parking garage but some trees would be great. Was just their this weekend for Hispanic Festival and was a fun event as always (packed). The number one complaint I have when that area has an event is the heat. I seems like its always a scorcher. I has so much more potential but i'll probably be 100 yo when/if its finally finished like the river. 

[joeDowntown]

This was discussed a long time ago in this forum, but there's a good reason they can't do too much to Calder plaza. The parking garage below was only engineered for a certain load. Something that seems as simple as adding grass, trees, nature walks, etc. adds a massive amount of weight and is just not feasible. The old designs they had worked on tried to add as much shade, green space, etc. as possible, but within the physical limits of the weight it can bear. I forget the exact numbers, but the amount of weight even 5-10" of soil would add is pretty insane. 

So unless they blew out the whole plaza and parking structure, there are limits to what they can do.

With that being said, I really liked some of the options they presented a few years back.

Joe

[Jonesey]

6 hours ago, Prankster said:

Any work they do would be lipstick on a pig. They need to completely redo it, and not just put up a splash pad, some trees and planters. 
It is the most pedestrian unfriendly part of downtown. 

Yeah I thought the same thing.  Really almost the entire block needs to  redone, the area is such a dead zone when there's not an event.  The parking decks have been neglected for years and I would think they're getting close to the end of their life, they also have a super low clearance.  The parking isn't underneath the city or county building, so they COULD save them if they really wanted to, but those are outdated and have a super poor layout as well.  They used to have buckets in the county building to catch water when it would rain.  The county has plenty of space at their Fuller campus and city offices are spread all over the city and could use some consolidation.  The federal building really needs to go too.  Will it ever happen?  Probably not anytime soon.....

[Zads]

DDA has approved the upcoming work to the plaza

https://www.crainsgrandrapids.com/news/real-estate/grand-rapids-downtown-board-oks-design-work-for-calder-plaza/

"Before the full plaza redesign takes place, the whole concrete deck needs to be removed, waterproofed and replaced — a city project that will begin in 2025. In the meantime, the first phase of design work will include stakeholder meetings, concept design, renderings, cost estimates and selecting a construction manager, which is set to be done in about 12-14 weeks. "

[Prankster]

Lipstick on a pig. 

[GR_Urbanist]

1 hour ago, Prankster said:

Lipstick on a pig. 

They seriously still don't get it. Plazas (real ones) are successful because they are places that are on the way to somewhere and are on the way from somewhere.

Calder Plaza isnt midway between anywhere. People also dont go there because there is nothing to see. When I see stuff like: "...adding gathering spaces including a pavilion, and programming opportunities to activate the space more throughout the year", It is a massive red flag that the whole plan is to pepper the place with gimmicks in hopes that people will "gather" there.  Sure, during the various festivals that take place there, people are there, but you cant have a festival every day, and without those, people simply arent going to show up.

 

If they really want Calder Plaza to ever work, they need to:

A: Do something with that 50 year old parking lot to the south

B: The Ford Federal building will either need a ground floor along Calder Plaza  that  actually has public use, or that whole relic of a building needs to move, and that land used for something with a housing, office, and retail component.

C. Ottawa Ave needs reworking so it isn't a multi-lane one-way  deacceleration street for cars coasting off the highway.

 

I just see this as really making it look more fresher, but not making it useful.

[whitemice]

18 hours ago, GR_Urbanist said:

I just see this as really making it look more fresher, but not making it useful.

Agree; Calder Plaza is a money pit, this seems to mostly be about refusing to abandoned what was clearly a bad idea.

There is no there there. Calder Plaza's soul is a parking ramp for office towers.  Potted plants on top will not change that.  So much resources that could be better deployed elsewhere.

[cstonesparty]

1 hour ago, whitemice said:

Agree; Calder Plaza is a money pit, this seems to mostly be about refusing to abandoned what was clearly a bad idea.

There is no there there. Calder Plaza's soul is a parking ramp for office towers.  Potted plants on top will not change that.  So much resources that could be better deployed elsewhere.

I think we've basically circled around to previous conversation about city hall.  That seems to me to be the crux of the issue--as long as city hall is there, the use of that block is somewhat locked.  Is there ANY possibility that city leaders would consider relocating?  I think very unlikely.  Even more unlikely that the federal building would be relocated...