KALAMAZOO | The Exchange (155 W Michigan Ave) | 182 FT | 15 Floors
 

This project definitely came out of left field. It will certainly be a nice addition to the Kalamazoo downtown urban fabric. Plus its being built on a surface lot.
Developer picks prime downtown Kalamazoo locale to erect 8-story mixed-use complex

http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/..._downtown.html

Here's some renderings from the developers blog.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PzMeFmY4xJ...600/scene9.jpg


http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E_edg2X5_i...600/scene3.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PYMvvrFLSB...600/scene1.jpg

If this project breaks ground, it would certainly add to the momentum of development along Michigan Avenue in DT Kalamazoo. Another project that got underway last December is the Metropolitan Center. It involves the redevelopment of four buildings at 105, 113, 119, 123 and 127 East Michigan Avenue. Plans call for 30,000 square feet of space to be turned into a mixed-use development. The final project will have retail on the ground level, 28 residential units on the 2nd and 3rd floors. It will be complete in 2012.

Here's some photos of the progress from the developers facebook page.
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._6945640_n.jpg

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._3986656_n.jpg

http://kalamazoometropolitancenter.com/

This project has been upgraded to 12 stories.
http://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/..._exchange.html

The project was previously stalled due to financing issues.

FYI, I have included this proposed high-rise in the project rundown for the new KALAMAZOO / PORTAGE Development Thread that was recently started. You can link to that here.

I don't know the current status of this project but it still seems held up. The site signage was changed relatively recently, with the previous project rendering image removed. Now PlazaCorps's website shows this proposed project as a 15-story, 335,000 SF mixed-use tower, and states that Chemical Bank would anchor the property with a new 2-story, 14,000 SF suite. The proposed building will feature about 60,000 square feet of commercial space, internal parking, and luxury apartments.

Anyone have more information on this?

https://tb26ha.sn.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Image: Rendering of The Exchange
Image Source: PlazaCorp

Wow, it just got uglier and uglier as the years passed. Yay.

Keep the damn parking lot

Oof wow that is bad. The previous tower pinkster version was fine, why did it get changed to this mess?

Granted, it is a sketchy rendering, but the form just seems...dated. Maybe they were trying to reference some of the curved tower architecture happening across the street at the Radisson.

I have a feeling this is still not what the final design will be, if ever built. The fact that the imagery on the site signage is completely gone is some indicator that this is still in flux.

It seems like there's been a changing of the guard, because Tower's name is gone from the site signage, but Byce & Associates is now listed, and if you go to their website, it's the first thing featured.

Update - I just did a little more research. On Byce's website, it states that the project is 'in design' and construction is scheduled to commence in 'early 2017' with occupancy by mid-2018. I won't hold my breath.

There are also some floor plans:

First / Ground Floor Plan:
https://uy8gmw.sn.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none

Upper (Ninth) Floor Plan:
https://vi8gmw.sn.files.1drv.com/y4m...&cropmode=none
Images Source: Byce Website

Also, this MBiz article says that all of the state approvals and incentives the development team was looking for to move forward were received back in December, including a $6.4 million Michigan Community Revitalization Program (CRP) loan towards the now estimated $52.7 million project. It puts the construction timeline at 20 months long, from groundbreaking to completion.

Site Prep is Underway at The Exchange Site
 

I did a double-take this morning as I was driving in to work and saw site barriers and fencing being installed around the Exchange site, at the southeast corner of Michigan Avenue and Rose Street. The far right lanes on both Michigan and Rose are now blocked to traffic. By all appearances, this project is now moving forward, and initial site prep is underway.

Here are some photos that I took later in the day - not much to see here yet, but you can get a sense of the area.

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At 15 stories, this is a considerable size building for the city, and it will be the largest development happening in the city once it breaks ground, which could be very soon, by the looks of it. I hope we see updated / improved renderings soon.

PS - Is there any way to change / update the thread title? Since we know a bit more info about the project now?

New Rendering is up
 

Well, ask, and you shall receive I guess. A new rendering is up...not much difference, except some changes to the treatment of the parking deck levels.

https://6dfgna-sn3301.files.1drv.com...&cropmode=none
Image Source: MLive

Excavation progress is underway at the site of the planned 15-story Exchange building. Work is moving quickly at the moment - Some photos from today.

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I found some plans of a few more of the floor levels, in a brochure on PlazaCorp's website.

https://pl8zmq-sn3301.files.1drv.com...&cropmode=none

https://pb8zmq-sn3301.files.1drv.com...&cropmode=none

The penthouse floor plan shows the potential for three possible suites to be built-out, along with four separate roof terraces. While the idea of a penthouse level restaurant / lounge would be neat, I'm surprised that this floor isn't planned to be all residential instead.

A bit of history uncovered during Kalamazoo construction
by Mike Krafcik, WWMT
April 25, 2017

WWMT did a short story about some old brick arches that were unearthed during excavations for the new Exchange tower. If you like history, you might find it interesting. Here's a link to the video; I couldn't figure out how to embed it directly: http://wwmt.com/news/local/a-bit-of-...o-construction

It would be neat if some of that old brick could be incorporated into the new work. Kinda makes you wonder what is buried under the many other surface lots in the city. Here's some screenshots from the news story.

https://879pgg-sn3301.files.1drv.com...&cropmode=none
The Arches

https://pl9pgg-sn3301.files.1drv.com...&cropmode=none
JR Jones & Sons Department Store, of which the brick arches are suspected to be a part of.

Official groundbreaking for The Exchange was on Friday, although site prep and foundation work is already underway. Opening is now set for spring of 2019. At 15 stories tall, this is about as good as it gets for Kalamazoo.

Work begins on long-awaited Exchange Building in Kzoo

Construction update photos, taken 6/2 and 6/3, by me. The foundations are well underway for the eastern portion of the building (Lobby 'A' elevator core) and electrical utility work is occurring in the alley behind.

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^ Nice pics and this should climb fast since they're not going down very far.

I hope you're right about it rising fast. And I was surprised to see no floor level below grade to speak of. Unless there will be some underground space on the other half of the site (but I don't think so). With the site bordered by Rose Street, Michigan Avenue, and The Kalamazoo Building, I suppose it would have been cost-prohibitive / technically infeasible to try to get any of the parking levels underground.

A couple of pics from lunch today. Two excavators and a bulldozer on site. Crews are quickly removing all of the excavated earth that was piled up on the western half of the site and carting it somewhere else. I expect it's only a matter of days until they begin excavation on that half of the site for the rest of the foundation work.

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And just for fun, here's a few photos from Lunchtime Live!, in nearby Bronson Park (live music and food trucks every Friday through the summer):

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Construction progress photos from Friday, 6/16, taken by me. The foundation work continues to march westward across the site at a rapid clip:

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Another look at the site today, Sunday 6/18. Crews already removed the forms from the fresh concrete foundations poured on Friday, 6/16:

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