Originally constructed in 1976, the GRCC Ford Natatorium is being transformed from an underutilized aquatic space into a modern fitness and recreation center designed to meet the evolving needs of GRCC students, faculty, staff, and the community.

The new recreation center will include an indoor turf gymnasium, fitness areas, student lounge spaces, athletic offices, a nutrition center, Zoom rooms, and multipurpose spaces designed for collaboration. Additionally, the concept of a “third place” offers students a welcoming space beyond academics, enhancing connections across campus.

The renovation and addition project at Chicago Christian High School was guided by five key principles: capturing a holistic campus vision, meeting each student where they are through 21st-century learning, creating strong connections, providing a facility that is accessible to all and establishing a lasting and durable impact. These principles informed the design of the updated high school, while accommodating a growing student body and ensuring modern learning environments.

This project includes an eye-catching addition and renovation to improve the cafeteria and adjacent commons area, creating a multifunctional space for eating, learning, and gathering. The new addition, which serves as a visual and welcoming entrance, integrates the school’s new branding throughout and features a learning stair at the entrance, lounge areas, and accessibility ramps that connect seamlessly with the architectural design.

Since 2018, Hudsonville Public Schools has added around 125 students per year in the district and needed educational facilities to accommodate their current and future growth. As part of the district’s long-term master plan, the community approved a 2019 bond proposal to build new school facilities, including a new school for fifth and sixth graders, as well as renovate and add onto existing buildings, to address the district’s population needs. The high school has undergone a complete transformation to create additional classrooms, expand athletics and arts facilities, and connect campus buildings with multifunctional spaces.

With a total of 104,000 square feet, the new Hudsonville Fieldhouse serves as the new athletics and training hub for the high school. Located south of the existing high school building, the fieldhouse includes locker rooms, a 1/9 mile running track, two-levels of fitness and strength areas, a multipurpose tennis court, and three full size basketball courts for athletics events with spectator seating for 3,700 people. The unique top-loading design of the fieldhouse delivers a 360-view of the court floor and connects spaces on the upper level, making the facility ideal for hosting competitions, expositions, and community events. High-performance lighting in the fieldhouse provides an elevated spectator experience complemented by ample daylighting, a center-hung video board, and interactive district branding throughout.

Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) has offered classes on the Lakeshore, spread out in four locations, for more than 20 years. With programs in disparate locations and in small, leased available spaces in buildings through the area, serving students and maintaining fiscal responsibility was a challenge on top of restricted growth.

The college purchased the former JCPenney in The Shops at Westshore Mall in the heart of Holland Township to become a consolidated GRCC Lakeshore Campus, committed to serving Lakeshore learners of all ages. One consolidated campus creates synergy and collaboration across programs that are physically co-located, and provides opportunities for operational efficiencies and partnerships with Grand Valley State University’s Meijer campus as well as other area colleges. The 52,000 square-foot campus facility gives GRCC flexibility to grow into the much-larger space and establishes a strong presence, truly embedding the college – and education – in a community.

This renovation and addition project will transform the Stadium Club at Western Michigan University (WMU)’s Waldo Stadium Field from primarily game day use to a 24/7/365 a year entertaining, fundraising, and intimate conversation space. The goal of the updated suite is to offer an elegant and welcoming experience to patrons unique to WMU.

A more modern and luxurious feel within the space, enhanced by high-end finishes and unique backgrounds, will add an excitement that can be easily shared on social media channels.

Calvin University’s athletics improvements projects embody the idea of “bring teams home” by developing a vibrant and centralized space on campus for all athletics groups. Building from the University’s 2015 master plan, these improvements create a coherent, purposeful, and connected long-term plan for growth on campus through athletics. The multi-phase project includes updates to Gainey Athletic Field’s turf and track and the construction of the new Calvin University soccer stadium.

The projects kicked off with the construction of a new track at the Gainey Athletic Field because the original track was displaced by the construction of the new stadium. The turf soccer field at Zuidema Field, the first turf field for the University, was completed next which offers space for multiple sports teams to use. The stadium field will be home for Calvin’s men’s and women’s soccer and men’s and women’s lacrosse teams, with options for outdoor physical education classes and intramural activities. The baseball, softball and cross-country teams could also utilize the synthetic turf as a practice site when their fields’ conditions are inadequate.

The Clinton County Regional Educational Service Agency (CCRESA) provides support services to schools in mid-Michigan through programs like special education, speech, and physical therapy for students from birth to 26 years old. The Educational Center that houses these programs will undergo renovations to reorganize the layout, improve security, and create an inviting environment for students, families, and staff.

Several classrooms and support rooms will be updated and reorganized to improve the traffic flow and wayfinding experience throughout the facility. Classrooms will be more equal in size and will have easier access to adjacent bathrooms. The current emotionally impaired classroom will have new, dedicated quiet areas and space for individual work. The group playroom will be moved closer to the building’s entrance, which is more central to therapists and counsellors and provides closer parking for students and families. The updates also create space for a new life skills classroom that will simulate independent or assisted living environments with instruction for cooking, home making, and laundry. A new drop off and unloading zone for building deliveries will also be added to the back of the building, alleviating cross traffic between trucks and families at the entrance, creating a safer entry experience. 

For more than 70 years, Unity Christian High School has expanded the mission of their school in fostering faith, increasing knowledge, and developing skills in students to serve God and others. Serving 700 students annually, the school is expected to steadily increase enrollment over the next few years. The high school was constructed on the 110-acre school campus with room to grow for future projects. The new expansion project was proposed to meet the growing demand for space, while still serving the school’s original master plan from 1999.

Sequence I of the high school expansion project will add new classrooms and an expanded Bible classroom to the south wing. The expanded north wing will provide additional space for STEM programs, such as industrial arts, welding, woodworking, CAD/engineering, and robotics. Four existing classrooms will also be renovated into an educational support suite for counseling and student wellness services. A new bridge connector will join the north and south wings of the school together and provide students with additional learning and gathering spaces. The connector encloses an exterior courtyard and creates a separate student area that fosters a feeling of community and inclusion. The connector will include an elevator for equal accessibility and efficiency for all students. This portion of the project began in spring 2023 and is expected to be completed in fall 2024.

As part of a $97.9 million bond issue, West Ottawa Public Schools was looking to create a unique stadium complex for West Michigan with premier facilities for each West Ottawa sport. The district was experiencing capacity issues and programming limitations in the existing Panther Stadium, located at the middle school and the oldest non-renovated facility in the district.

The new stadium complex is located near the West Ottawa High School North campus and provides an intimate athletics spectator experience with the capability to host multiple events simultaneously. Featuring two synthetic turf fields and both large and small venues, weather no longer affects the fields and interrupts the game. An 18×30-foot video board at the football field creates an exciting, professional game experience for players and fans alike, as does a central tunnel beneath the grandstands for the home team to enter the field to cheering fans. The north end zone of the football field has a dedicated section of bleachers for the band, and by removing a track from around the main field, fans are closer to the action for a more intimate spectator experience. Adding elevated fan experiences, such as a concourse level between the upper and lower sections of the home stands, bigger bleachers, and nicer concession stands and restrooms, establishes a venue for multiple sports and attracts the entire community to utilize the facility.

As part of the 2020 bond program, Ferndale High School (FHS) transformed their underutilized second pool into a new athletic training facility, fitness center, and wrestling practice area. The previous weight room was located in a corridor with no access to natural light and restrictive walls. Now, the open two-story design creates an open and airy space dedicated to fitness and athletics. 

The state-of-the-art weight room has an auxiliary gym space outfitted with wrestling mats and a built-in turf sprint track for multi-purpose use. With the addition of the new athletics-focused space, FHS student athletes can fully prepare for competition and the student body at large will have more fitness opportunities within the curriculum.