New projects in Monroe North

[Guest]

i always thought that building would make a great techno/electronic music bar.

[mpchicago]

On 6/9/2020 at 11:03 AM, mpchicago said:

 

Thanks numstead, and welcome back   Look forward to some renderings, pics of progress!

numstead - rendering still embargoed? 

[ctpgr34]

840 Ottawa

Skate Park

[mpchicago]

Thanks for Pics! 

Re 840 Ottawa- Integrated Architecture ^^^ I would be lying if I didn't say that I'm a little bummed they did not keep some of that original brick.    That siding is a little over done these days.

Edited December 9, 2020 by mpchicago

[joeDowntown]

Have to say that looks pretty bland. Especially for an architectural firms office. 

Joe

[mpchicago]

Integrated Architecture nearing completion of their Monroe North offices.   Working on a little RED rebranding as well.

https://www.facebook.com/IntegratedArchitecture/

https://mibiz.com/sections/real-estate-development/integrated-architecture-puts-finishing-touches-on-new-office-space-near-downtown-gr

[joeDowntown]

I like the red that extends from the outside to inside. I drove by the other day, and the entrance is really looking good. I'm not in love with the exterior (and it doesn't look like landscaping will help much as they don't have much space to work with), but the inside looked really nice (peaking through the windows). Not saying it's a bad edition to downtown. I was just expecting more interesting materials, etc. 

[deja vu]

Downtown GR Inc. continues to feature outdoor art installations that are a part of the city's ongoing "World of Winter" initiative. The "Impulse" art installation in Monroe North looks particularly awesome against the backdrop of new development - 

"The Singing Tree" - Canal Park, Monroe North Neighborhood -

Source: LinkedIn | Downtown Grand Rapids, Inc.

"Impulse" - 555 Monroe, Monroe North Neighborhood -

Source: LinkedIn | Downtown Grand Rapids, Inc.

[grandrollerz]

There is a rockford crane awaiting erection at the old Baker Furniture building at 1661 Monroe.  Couldn't find anything online yet....anyone know anything on this?

[Raildude's dad]

My guess it's a place to store it till it's needed someplace. It's been there a while. No room for at at 6th St headquarters

[MJLO]

Maybe it's in queue to be put up at the Perrigo site?

[grandrollerz]

Yeah, it looks too neat. Probably storage.

[GRDadof3]

On 3/15/2021 at 12:09 AM, grandrollerz said:

Yeah, it looks too neat. Probably storage.

I'll bet that's the crane for Perrigo. Rockford and Walsh Construction are building it. 

[GRDadof3]

Monroe Community Church is moving up to the old Protocam facility between Monroe and Ottawa. It will be nice when more renovations start spilling more over onto Ottawa. 

Some of you might recognize that "mid century" facade on the Ottawa side. 

https://goo.gl/maps/ehWpkxPQ9xFTuo6K7

 

[joeDowntown]

Glad they found a spot and hope it’s a sign that the building they are currently in will be redeveloped sometime in the near future. 

Joe

[JimiThing]

As of around noon today, the bullet hole and subsequent spider cracking is still prominently displayed in the front window of Embassy Suites. If you can see the street level, you can see the shattered glass. This can't be good for business (I use that term in the context of the entire city). Do we have a shortage of plywood to board it up right now too?  What's the deal, it's been nine days.

Edited June 27, 2021 by JimiThing

[Allison Slater]

Well, actually, there HAS been a wood shortage with prices of lumber like 4-5x what they usually are, so..

[GRDadof3]

10 hours ago, Allison Slater said:

Well, actually, there HAS been a wood shortage with prices of lumber like 4-5x what they usually are, so..

Stick lumber has come way down, but still high historically.

OSB is what is still astronomically high due to resin shortages. It would cost a fortune to board up downtown like they did after the riots. Probably 3 -4x more expensive now. 

[joeDowntown]

4 hours ago, GRDadof3 said:

Stick lumber has come way down, but still high historically.

OSB is what is still astronomically high due to resin shortages. It would cost a fortune to board up downtown like they did after the riots. Probably 3 -4x more expensive now. 

Unless the window is massive in size, it still seems like it'd be worth the $200-$400 bucks to cover a window with a bullet hole. Not very welcoming for guests. 

Maybe a short-term solution would be to have someone fake a scooter accident and smash into it, so it looks like an out of control scooter rider instead of a bullet.

Joe

[grandrollerz]

Slightly off-topic here, but does anyone know why Osteria Rossa is boarded up??

[joeDowntown]

Monroe Community Church looks close to completing the renovation of their new building on Monroe. It's bold, but I like it. 

 

[GRDadof3]

Is this finally going to happen? Looks pretty cool (the switchback park).

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/proposed-path-would-connect-belknap-to-downtown-gr/

That little bastard squirrel looks like he's up to no good. 

[Chester Cheeto]

On 9/10/2021 at 5:15 PM, GRDadof3 said:

Is this finally going to happen? Looks pretty cool (the switchback park).

https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/proposed-path-would-connect-belknap-to-downtown-gr/

That little beotch squirrel looks like he's up to no good. 

Boy I sure hope so! This has been in the works since I lived in Belknap five years ago.

It sure would've been nice using something like this pushing our stroller vs. going down the hill on a busy noisy Michigan St to get downtown.

[GRDadof3]

Looks like the old Baker Furniture building is going to see new life. As... a furniture company headquarters. 

https://mibiz.com/sections/real-estate-development/new-mien-co-hq-planned-at-former-baker-furniture-building-along-gr-riverfront

 

Interestingly, the future plans may have a residential component:

 

“It’s a beautiful location. We want to make sure the people who work there love working there,” he said. “We hope to create an environment there with housing and maybe a restaurant, but we don’t know the extent of what that will look like right now.”

[walker]

The planning commission approved adding a floor to the old section of the building:

WOODTV: grand-rapids/mien-company's-new-plan-for-old-baker-furniture-building-gets-ok

The old part of the building was built in 1872.  That was before steel framing so likely the building is supported mostly by the external walls.  I've been in the building and the walls are thickest on the first floor and are thinner as you go up.  Hopefully they have accounted for that.

Probably the oldest steel framed building in Grand Rapids is the Trust Building built in 1892, one of the earliest skyscrapers anywhere..  Even with the steel framing, the  thickness of the Trust Building's external walls diminishes as you go higher.  So even with the steel, either they didn't quite trust the new technology or they hadn't yet figured out how to hang walls.        

Trust Building Wiki

Edit: Actually, taking a look just now at the Baker proposal, I think where they are proposing the new floor may have been an addition built sometime much later than 1872.  If you look at the 1918 photo in the WOODTV link you can see that this section of the building doesn't show.  So I don't know for sure what holds that part of the building up.  But the above is still a good story so I'm sticking with it.

Edited October 6, 2021 by walker
second thoughts