Financial realities have ended plans for a boutique hotel, commercial office space and both moderate and premium apartments on Western Michigan University's historic East Campus.
Instead, East Hall will become an alumni center and other buildings on Prospect Hill, which looks out over the city, will be razed to create campus green space and parking for the alumni center. WMU will borrow $15 million for the work to be done there. The extent of the renovations will depend upon how much private support is generated.
The larger plans for the property had to be abandoned after it was determined the $60 million project could not be funded using state brownfield redevelopment and historic preservation tax credits as originally envisioned by the developer. The historic tax credits are not available to WMU because it is a nonprofit and brownfield redevelopment funds have been eliminated by the state.
Plans for renovating East Hall are not yet complete, but the concept is to focus on the building core--about 34,000 square feet of the original building that was completed in 1905. It includes the columned portico facing the community, the lighted cupola, and the University's original administrative and instructional spaces.
West Hall, North Hall, and the Speech and Hearing Center will be demolished as soon as possible to eliminate the expense of dollars for security, utilities and basic maintenance.
"More than a dozen years ago, we had all of our East Campus buildings assessed," says WMU president John M. Dunn. "We were told then, we needed to 'save something, or lose it all.' We've decided we can wait no longer, and it is of paramount importance to our campus and community to save the core of East Hall."
Writer: Kathy Jennings, Second Wave Media
Source: Cheryl Roland, Western Michigan University
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