WCC reopens Morris Lawrence Building after $13.5 million renovation

Washtenaw Community College (WCC) has reopened its Morris Lawrence Building to the public after a yearlong, $13.5 million renovation project. The renovation includes a variety of infrastructure improvements, including new flooring, lighting, and a more eco-friendly energy system. These renovations, which are the first major changes to the 31-year-old building, also opens doors to new services and activities for the campus community.

WCC Director of Media Relations Fran LeFort describes the Morris Lawrence Building as Washtenaw County’s “front door” to WCC. 

“More than 4,600 square feet of seminar rooms easily convert to as many as 12 meeting spaces for training events or meetings hosted by businesses or community/campus organizations,” LeFort says. 

Campus organizations including music and theater arts groups, as well as the WCC Police Academy, utilize the building’s space for meetings and training sessions.

With renovations completed, including improvements to the 480-seat Towsley Auditorium, LeFort says the building will provide the perfect space for upcoming “Train the Trainers” events, which local trade unions host to educate apprentice instructors. The Operational Plasterers and Cement Masons International Association was the first group to use the renovated building. 600 ironworkers will use the building this week, and nearly 3,000 plumbers and pipefitters will use it in August.

More information on the Morris Lawrence Building is available here.

Rylee Barnsdale is a Michigan native and longtime Washtenaw County resident. She wants to use her journalistic experience from her time at Eastern Michigan University writing for the Eastern Echo to tell the stories of Washtenaw County residents that need to be heard.
 
Photo by JD Scott Photography.
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