Kalamazoo

[Nitro]

Here are some more Kalamazoo development tidbits:

The Speareflex Block, containing Shakespeare's Pub and Biggs-Gilmore Advertising

Close Dadof, but you've got a picture of the Globe Building there. This is the building that contains District 211 restaurant.

Across the street in the Art Deco 2 story building is Shakespeare's Pub and Biggs Gilmore is in the Spereflex block which is the 5 story building in the other picture from that site with the windows out. I even see my old construction sign hanging from the Spereflex building. Gag.

I spent three years of my life working on these buildings. It was quite a challenge. If you go to that website that you list you can see the demolition of the building we took down in back of Spereflex. Note that Spereflex is painted white. We had to soda blast the entire building to get the paint off.

There are some other pictures on the developer's website. http://www.plazacorp.net/speareflex/default.asp

Nitro

[GRDadof3]

Thanks for the correction, Nitro. I thought those two pictures looked very similar

Whoops! It didn't take much for that site to go down

[GRDadof3]

So were you part of the CSM Group Nitro?

http://www.csmgroup.com/portfolio/portfoli...hakespeare.html

I found this picture if it weren't already painful enough for you

Oh, yah, and here's the "post-sodablasted" Shakespeare. Funny that I don't remember either of these buildings from my years there. They must have blended in with the numerous decrepit industrial buildings downtown at the time.

[mpchicago]

Interesting side note:

The Kalamazoo Valley Musuem (picture posted above) was designed by the same firm that designed the Van Andel Musuem Center. Can't remember their name, but they were out of Boston. The KVM came a few years after the VMC.

Nice story about the Walwood Union Jeff. Ahhhhh the drunken days of college

[GRDadof3]

E Verner Johnson & Associates:

http://www.vernerjohnson.com/portfolio/history.html

Kalamazoo has done a lot for the downtown in the past 10 years. Here's what the main library looked like even up until 1994/95:

and here is the libary today:

[torgo]

E Verner Johnson & Associates:

http://www.vernerjohnson.com/portfolio/history.html

Kalamazoo has done a lot for the downtown in the past 10 years. Here's what the main library looked like even up until 1994/95:

Egad!

[GRDadof3]

Egad!

Which one?

[torgo]

the first one, of course.

[Nitro]

So were you part of the CSM Group Nitro?

Nope, one GC previous to CSM. The Developer went through GC's like he changed clothes. There was one before us and two after us just on that project.

We went as far as doing the white box redevelopment on the Spereflex Block and the buildout for Biggs Gilmore. Biggs has a pretty sweet buildout. We had to install a custom made 1"x1" tile mosaic Twister board for them. They also have a 1950's era soda fountain in there. Pretty cool stuff.

Nitro

[snoogit]

http://www.urbanohio.com/OhioSkylinesPics/.../Kalamazoo8.JPG

K'zoo definately wins "best 5/3 bank building"

[LA Dave]

When I was a youngin, Kazoo had all the big concerts -- Rock, pop, even classical. I think that the great tenor Richard Tucker had the misfortune to pass on in Kalamazoo, either just after or just before a concert.

I guess with Van Andel Arena and DeVos Hall, as well as the tremendous growth in the GR area, this is less true today, but I would imagine that the WMU/K-College concentration would still be a draw for musicians.

I also remember being a little p---ed off that the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan moved its cathedral from the wonderful St. Mark's in downtown GR (see GR photos for pics) to an incredibly ugly brick box in Portage, a Kalamazoo suburb. Ironically, the Diocese is now thinking of selling the cathedral due to financial pressures, though the Bishop swears that he will not move the diocesan offices from Kalamazoo.

[GRDadof3]

I also remember being a little p---ed off that the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan moved its cathedral from the wonderful St. Mark's in downtown GR (see GR photos for pics) to an incredibly ugly brick box in Portage, a Kalamazoo suburb. Ironically, the Diocese is now thinking of selling the cathedral due to financial pressures, though the Bishop swears that he will not move the diocesan offices from Kalamazoo.

Is that the strange looking church you can see from I-94 right near Oakland Drive?

Oh yah, it is:

[LA Dave]

Is that the strange looking church you can see from I-94 right near Oakland Drive?

Oh yah, it is:

Yes it is. Bishop Bennison's revenge. (He was the Bishop of West Michigan at the time, and didn't want to move from Kazoo.)

[torgo]

Yes it is. Bishop Bennison's revenge. (He was the Bishop of West Michigan at the time, and didn't want to move from Kazoo.)

So when are they gonna finish it?

[tobias]

However, the Cathedral does work well as a setting for participating in the Liturgy. Church buildings should not only be pleasing to look at, their real value comes in how they are used and if they draw the worshiper into the Liturgical life of the Church

[GR8scott]

Is that the strange looking church you can see from I-94 right near Oakland Drive?

Oh yah, it is:

I actally like the church, it is easily visable from the expressway and has a very interesting look not very common of newer later 20th century + churches, which seem to look more like high schools and warehouses maybe with a steeple

[GR8scott]

I got some old photos of kzoo mostly from WMU,

the skyline from the hill on east campus

spral tower and the psychiatric tower

downtown from westnage hill

an old upjohn building being demolished, its to bad because it is probably the 3rd tallest building in the city and will take away from an already small and spreadout skyline

an old paper mill in the middle of the city, I would like to explore it sometime since there are not even fences on the other side

the psychiatric tower in the middle of the hospital

east campus

an old frat on east campus and a veiw you can see for miles also the back of the stadium

main campus

miller auditorium

waldo library

Kalamazoo College

I will try get some new pics soon and get some of the old abandoned psychiatric hospital and downtown. let me know if you have any requests

[NorthCoast]

I lived in Kalamazoo and attended WMU for awhile and I must say I absolutely loved the campus. East Campus has some wonderful buildings from the early 20th century(as seen in the post above). The view of Kalamazoo from the front porch of East Hall is absolutely gorgeous. Neighboring K-College is equally as beautiful and is reminiscent of many older colleges one would find in New England.

[GRDadof3]

Thanks for the great photos GR8scott! Special requests (if you get the chance):

- Pictures of Homecoming and Western's game tomorrow

- There is a building on Rose Street, just North of W Michigan Ave (right by the Radisson) that was rehabbed 10 or 12 years ago that is fantastic. I think it is called the Henenberg Bldg. It has the curved gothic-styled roofs to it. On the West side of the street just before you get to Arcadia Creek.

- Some of the old homes along South Street

- There are a couple of streets East off of Oakland Drive that are always amazing this time of year with the colored tree canopy hanging completely over the street, maybe just before White's Road area?

- I was going to say the old Borgess Hospital, but I found this one:

You probably asked the wrong guy for requests

[ZachariahDaMan]

Have any of you guys explored that old paper mill in the middle of the city? I love urban exploring and I would but I don't live near Kalamazoo.

[GRDadof3]

$70 Million mixed use project in the works in downtown Kzoo:

Big, new downtown project in works

Friday, October 28, 2005

[email protected] 388-8551

A development that could exceed $70 million and alter the face of downtown Kalamazoo was introduced to the City Commission this morning.

A project that would include commercial, retail and residential development and a 600-space parking ramp is planned for a city parking lot off Water Street, behind several Michigan Avenue storefronts immediately east of the Kalamazoo Mall.

http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index....2380.xml&coll=7

I don't think I like the idea that they are going to tear down 130 year old buildings for this

[rstravis]

Wow, reading this thread has brought back some memories. Bilbo's cheese sticks and dill sauce -- real cheap late at night (like after my fraternity's Thursday night meetings -- we took the place over!). And ye olde Pilsen Klub Passport -- I still have mine around here somewhere. Never did fill it up, but my best buddy did when he was living in Spindler Hall (walking distance from Waldo's).

Aheights15 said:

1. The Gilmore Keyboard Festival and more options for music. Besides the festival, WMU has a fantastic music/fine arts program, so there is always something going on. I haven't found anything yet in GR that compares.

I actually got my Bachelor of Music at Western, and I have to agree that the music program there is well-established and strong.

However, keep your eyes open. GR does not have anything that compares to the Gilmore Keyboard Festival. But you might be surprised if you look at Grand Valley's music program today. When I was in high school, I wouldn't even consider GVSC. The music program was nothing. But when I decided last year to return to school for teacher certification, I found an immensely improved music program at GVSU. Does it rival Western's program? Overall, no. But there are elements of it (particularly education, as well as certain instrument studios) that rival or even surpass the quality of instruction at WMU. I'm not saying GV is perfect, but do keep an eye on it. It is an up-and-comer.

That said, Kzoo has an incredibly strong arts community in general for a city its size. To look at the events going on there and the quality, you would think the town was much closer to GR's size.

Rob

[GRDadof3]

Wow, reading this thread has brought back some memories. Bilbo's cheese sticks and dill sauce -- real cheap late at night (like after my fraternity's Thursday night meetings -- we took the place over!). And ye olde Pilsen Klub Passport -- I still have mine around here somewhere. Never did fill it up, but my best buddy did when he was living in Spindler Hall (walking distance from Waldo's).

Rob

Ah yes, Open Mike Night at Bilbo's Underground. Live music, A few games of darts, a few cheap pitchers, popcorn and a bunch of games of pinball: gotta love it I heard they tore down Knollwood Tavern a couple of years ago We used to hit that after Econ class every Thursday afternoon.

[rstravis]

yes, Knollwood was a great before-class and between-class bar ... I think it's a parking lot or something now.

I actually had a class (Seminar in Music Theory) of about 12 students (upper-level undergrad and some grads), with a hippie professor, that voted in the first month of the semester to move class to Bilbo's.

That's one of my fondest memories of Western ... sitting around a table at Bilbo's in the middle of the day, the prof and I both drinking Bell's Amber Ale (on tap), and other people with their other drinks, discussing various aspects of music theory once a week. ah, the good old days. I haven't been able to convince any of my Grand Valley profs to move class to Main Street Pub, although one of them was close to it.

Rob

[sstroh]

I heard from my brother who lives in Kzoo that they closed Bilbo's down a few weeks ago. They apparently are building a new building out near Wayside and the new Wild Buffalo Wings place. He was really bummed because he spent many a hours there. I don't know what they plan on putting in it's place.