After years of poor maintenance followed by abandonment, a renovated Grand Rapids landmark now offers 20 urban apartments on the Avenue for the Arts. The developer shored up the sagging structure following green principles and expects to receive LEED certification.
According to excerpts from the story:
Brookstone Capital LLC finished its renovation of the Watson & Heald building late last month and held a ribbon-cutting ceremony last Thursday. Developer Karl Chew invested about $6 million into the 124-year-old structure and renamed it 101 South Division Lofts. The building now has 20 moderate-income, loft-style apartments on the upper levels and 6,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor.
Back in 2002, the future of the building was a large question mark. That was the year the city of Grand Rapids took possession of the vacant building after its owner failed to reimburse the city $165,000 for the emergency repairs made to the sagging roof. The city then listed the building for a year to no avail, and even tried to auction it off at a series of auctions held in the lobby of the former Hall of Justice at Michigan Street and Monroe Avenue.
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