Spectrum - Monroe North Campus

[Guest]

On the PC agenda.....

G. 706 Bond Avenue NW - Ground Floor Residential/Parking Lot Address: 706 Bond Ave NW Applicant: Spectrum Health (Alan Kranzo) Requesting: Approval to construct a parking structure and stand-alone parking lot to support future office use. Zoning: TN-TBA (Traditional Neighborhood– Traditional Business A

[Khorasaurus1]

On 3/28/2021 at 10:00 AM, Floyd_Z said:

On the PC agenda.....

G. 706 Bond Avenue NW - Ground Floor Residential/Parking Lot Address: 706 Bond Ave NW Applicant: Spectrum Health (Alan Kranzo) Requesting: Approval to construct a parking structure and stand-alone parking lot to support future office use. Zoning: TN-TBA (Traditional Neighborhood– Traditional Business A

Why does it say "Ground Floor Residential?" I know they're doing discretionary ground floor residential approvals now, but this wouldn't have any ground floor residential, would it?

[joeDowntown]

Saw that too. Have to imagine it’s a typo/Mia-classification. 

there some sort of ventilation type construction vehicle sitting in a parking lot by Gill. Wonder if that building is coming down soon?

[mgreven]

MiBiz has a rendering.  I can't figure it out, though.  Look like it doesn't really go along Monroe except for a part between Brassworks and the hotel and we are looking at the back of BrassWorks? I assume all the tall "ghost" buildings are across the river and not real?

https://mibiz.com/sections/health-care/spectrum-health-details-plans-for-8-story-office-complex-near-downtown-gr?fbclid=IwAR3JZeVHWYOF8lIA_YEAJZsig7YpNVQcg9Lo7Twv5d21gLZ_HvfTakF0dB0

I assume there's more in the PC agenda packet but I don't see it online.  A site plan and Monroe elevation would help.  This looks similar to the new Perrigo to me.

[HomePortSupplyCo]

1 hour ago, mgreven said:

I assume there's more in the PC agenda packet but I don't see it online.  A site plan and Monroe elevation would help.  This looks similar to the new Perrigo to me.

Looks like maybe its gray brick???   Which I think will look better than more plain gray panels.

[Chester Cheeto]

Looks like that skywalk would attach into the the north side of the Brassworks building

[GRDadof3]

14 minutes ago, NoDustBusterNoMore said:

Looks like that skywalk would attach into the the north side of the Brassworks building

It's definitely looking at it from this angle:

(blue being skywalks, white being a parking ramp). 

[mpchicago]

22 hours ago, mgreven said:

MiBiz has a rendering.  I can't figure it out, though.  Look like it doesn't really go along Monroe except for a part between Brassworks and the hotel and we are looking at the back of BrassWorks? I assume all the tall "ghost" buildings are across the river and not real?

https://mibiz.com/sections/health-care/spectrum-health-details-plans-for-8-story-office-complex-near-downtown-gr?fbclid=IwAR3JZeVHWYOF8lIA_YEAJZsig7YpNVQcg9Lo7Twv5d21gLZ_HvfTakF0dB0

I assume there's more in the PC agenda packet but I don't see it online.  A site plan and Monroe elevation would help.  This looks similar to the new Perrigo to me.

This view is facing West/North West. The new 160,000 square foot building is aligned east/west, with its massing facing south toward downtown.  Skywalk to Brass Works, with walkway where Fairbanks used to run from Bond to Monroe.  You see a parking structure to north of the new building with skywalk to possible other parking  structure.   There is a large plaza off of Bond, with drop off area and a pavilion with what appears to be seating area.   From the rendering it appears they may ask to vacate Bond?   I know this is a preliminary rendering,  but I hope they work on that plaza/drop-off area, it looks a little thrown together.  They could break ground later this year.

Edited April 1, 2021 by mpchicago

[mgreven]

Yep. I was seeing it from the right angle. It’s the west side towers that threw me at first.

[Khorasaurus1]

It does look like they want to vacate Bond. Pedestrianize it from Trowbridge north, and then close it completely north of Fairbanks (which will become a cul-de-sac with a walkway to Monroe). 

Looks like some opportunities for ground floor retail, but probably not the entire ground floor.

What's going to happen to the Gill Building? It's a huge footprint...are they saving a portion of it for future expansion?

Monroe North is going to have its own skyline, which is kinda cool.

 

 

[GRDadof3]

17 hours ago, mgreven said:

Yep. I was seeing it from the right angle. It’s the west side towers that threw me at first.

It's interesting that they chose to show that angle. Would be interesting to see how it looks in relation to the Embassy Suites. It will probably be slightly taller (office floors are usually taller than hotel floors). 

The MiBiz author has been there a long time, he probably got an advance packet of info from Spectrum. 

[GR8scott]

like most other new buildings here, 2 or 3 more floors would seem to make a substantially more impact in that area with the profile of the building 

[mpchicago]

Spectrum Monroe North plans call for:

-  As renderings suggested vacating Bond with Fairbanks ending in circle drive at plaza in rear of new CTI Building and Brass Works.  A Bond "service drive" would have access both from Newberry and Trowbridge.

- Phase 1 would include 2 ramps - A 420 space garage behind the new CTI building, and a 420  space garage and 100-150 surface spots on the old Gill site, directly across the street.  

- Future plans on Gill site could include a building along Fairbanks between Bond and Ottawa connecting to the "Gill" parking structure and another possible liner building along Ottawa and Newberry.  

 

Edited April 3, 2021 by mpchicago

[GRDadof3]

9 hours ago, mpchicago said:

Spectrum Monroe North plans call for:

-  As renderings suggested vacating Bond with Fairbanks ending in circle drive at plaza in rear of new CTI Building and Brass Works.  A Bond "service drive" would have access both from Newberry and Trowbridge.

- Phase 1 would include 2 ramps - A 420 space garage behind the new CTI building, and a 420  space garage and 100-150 surface spots on the old Gill site, directly across the street.  

- Future plans on Gill site could include a building along Fairbanks between Bond and Ottawa connecting to the "Gill" parking structure and another possible liner building along Ottawa and Newberry.  

 

Wish there were a larger version of this. 

[mgreven]

13 hours ago, GRDadof3 said:

Wish there were a larger version of this. 

 

[GRDadof3]

20 hours ago, mgreven said:

 

Much better! So it is taller than Embassy Suites. That will make that area much more interesting for sure. 

[GRDadof3]

So based on the second site plan, it looks like there could be a second "tower" in the spot to the East, basically facing downtown. 

And I wonder what a "future liner program" is?  Liner development around the parking area? 

[GRDadof3]

Should we start a new thread for this project? It's apparently going to be pretty big and go on for a couple of years. 

[joeDowntown]

I like the overall concept of the development. Nothing overly inspiring about the building design, but it’ll fit well and I really like the free space they added. Hoping the future liner building includes some mixed use opportunities. 

Joe

[GRDadof3]

Now we just need the soccer stadium village on the West Side and downtown will be surrounded on 3 sides with massive infill (Studio Park, 201 Market, Monroe North Spectrum campus, Medical Mile). 

Like Holy Cow a real city. 

I assume this is Spectrum's long term vision.

[RegalTDP]

22 hours ago, joeDowntown said:

I like the overall concept of the development. Nothing overly inspiring about the building design, but it’ll fit well and I really like the free space they added. Hoping the future liner building includes some mixed use opportunities. 

Joe

+1. The building design is very "Medical Mile Chic" plunked straight from Michigan Street, but I like the way it's situated.  Monroe will have a more fully developed streetwall facing the river... and with this many employees being added to the area I hope the potential for liner development is there.

LOL, what's with all the skyscraper silhouettes in the backgrounds of these renderings?  It's like Belknap has been terraformed into Milwaukee.

Edited April 7, 2021 by RegalTDP

[joeDowntown]

LOL, I think there are silhouettes of buildings on US131 as well. They probably don't expect renderings to be scrutinized by a bunch of armchair quarterbacks.

Joe

[joeDowntown]

The planning commission approved the 990 parking spots for the new building. Sounds like demolition on the Gill building has started. 

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/spectrum-health-parking-plan-for-new-office-complex-okd/

Joe

 

[GR_Urbanist]

The parking lot part I'm not particularly thrilled with, and was precisely what I feared was going to happen. I want to think that the area, which we are told will be "future expansion", will take the same trajectory of facilities on Michigan and Monroe, and will develop quickly.  This is what I hope, so I'm not terribly worried, unless you get the usual saplings, juniper shrubs, and metal fence put up around it, then you will know that Spectrum is planning on that being there for at least a decade. 

Then I'm going to sort of get the impression that this was more a project to create a satellite parking facility with a modest building fronting Monroe to soften what would otherwise have never been approved.

[54equalsunity]

So we're getting one modestly-sized office building and two GIANT garages that are going to be occupied 8-10 hours a day? I think Monroe North is on the losing end of this deal, but that's the way the money cookie crumbles.