COVER
WHAT IS A CURRENT PROJECT OF YOURS OR SOMEONE ELSE’S THAT YOU’RE EXCITED ABOUT? I’m glad that there are investments in infrastructure going on around the area. I think that’s wildly important. There are some upgrades to the Board of Water & Light and parking downtown. I think Lansing’s got an awful lot of potential, so I’m glad to see those investments. There is a lot of space to grow geographically. I would say the McLaren project is one of the jobs that we’re really excited about in Lansing.
WHY HAVE YOU CHOSEN LANSING AS A DESTINATION FOR REDEVELOPMENT? The Granger family has been born and raised here in the Lansing area. There’s a strong sense of community, a sense of pride in the history the company has. When we go out to Michigan State University, we have either built or improved close to 50 percent of the buildings on campus. There’s a lot of pride there in those contributions. The work that we do, we cover the whole state. We have offices in Grand Rapids and Novi, and it’s nice to be centrally located in Lansing. It’s nice that you can get to an awful lot of places in an hour. I think what is exciting about Lansing is that there’s a
really good mix of industries. You have the state government, our industrial background, education through LCC and Michigan State, and health care. The financial and insurance industries are pretty strong in our area. They’re making investments in their continued presence here.
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE OF LANSING LOOK LIKE TO YOU? I think institutions like LCC that are forward-thinking and offering the next generation of education, they’ll be growing. I expect MSU to continue to grow in terms of the research side. The presence and upcoming operations of the FRIB will bring a lot of research technology fields to this area. There’s a strong sense of community, and a draw of being adjacent to that lab, that it’ll be really great.
T.A. FORSBERG INC. Brent Forsberg, president
IF BUDGET AND LOCATION WERE NO ISSUE, WHAT WOULD YOU WANT TO SEE IN LANSING? People are drawn to the resort-style feel of our communities. This past year, we executed on the grand opening of Elevation
Okemos in June, after several years of careful planning and work with Meridian Township and various other community stakeholders. Elevation Okemos brings an upscale apartment community unlike anything else we have seen in this area, and since the grand opening in June, the Elevation property management team have been inundated with requests to host various community events in the clubhouse. We believe that more community-centric spaces should exist in our region.
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE OF LANSING LOOK LIKE TO YOU? Looking forward in 2019, we have the redevelopment of 735 Hazel St., commonly known as The Wing, due to begin in the spring with our partners under the banner of Urban Systems. The redevelopment of this historic building will bring a unique functional work and living space concept that also offers some greatly needed maker space. Our focus is to provide a diverse range of housing to meet all cross sections of our community. Thus, our projects and joint ventures range from resort-style living, tradition single-family home lots, micro units and smaller homes such as the Tembo Homes.
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE OF MIDMICHIGAN LOOK LIKE TO YOU?? We are excited to be working with the city of Eaton Rapids to transform an uninhabited former trailer park into a community of newly constructed homes. We are currently working through the requirements with City Council and the Planning Commission and hope to be able to begin our construction by spring/summer.
GILLESPIE GROUP Pat Gillespie, president
WHAT IS A CURRENT PROJECT OF YOURS OR SOMEONE ELSE’S THAT YOU’RE EXCITED ABOUT? Our efforts, partnered with the city of Lansing and many other organizations, presented final products in Marketplace II, the second phase in our expansive apartments on Lansing’s river trail and the Grand River, and MP Social, a vibrant, modern and socially charged communal dining space with a great riverfront view and patio. In addition, we unveiled our biggest
Elevation apartments in Okemos 20
G R E AT E R L A N S I N G B U S I N E S S M O N T H LY
MARCH 2019