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December 16, 2002
MiBiz Network
By Lori Peterson
MUSKEGON - Residents choosing to rent the apartments
in the Muskegon Lakeshore SmartZone owned by Lansing-based
Gillespie Development will have the best of both worlds,
according to company owner and president Pat Gillespie.
"It's going to be a new building, but it will
feel like an old building. It's going to have all
the modern conveniences like high-tech wiring and
high-speed Internet, but it will have an old look
and an old feel," he said.
Gillespie will build two 1930's-era looking buildings
at the entrance to Muskegon's SmartZone that will
house retail and office space on the first floor and
42 loft-style apartments on the second and third floors.
The units, varying in size from 408 square feet to
868 square feet, will feature open floor plans, exposed
brick walls and the look of an old industrial building.
"It will be kind of a downtown Chicago, urban
type of feel," Gillespie told MiBiz.
Gillespie's SmartZone development includes two additional
buildings that will house commercial and retail tenants.
The project is one of five Muskegon-area developments
the firm is working on. Gillespie recently finished
building The Hamptons of Norton Shores, a 104-unit
apartment community on Old Grand Haven Road and is
getting ready to build two others - a 330-unit complex
in Fruitport by The Lakes Mall and a 264-unit complex
in east Muskegon on Apple Avenue. In addition, Gillespie
purchased two outlots near the SmartZone property
that each have the potential to house a 4,000-5,000-square-foot
freestanding building. The company has already spoken
to restaurants and financial institutions interested
in locating there.
Gillespie said he was drawn to Muskegon for its urban
renewal possibilities and untapped potential.
"I think downtown Muskegon's going to make a
comeback. You've got the waterfront, you've got a
new highway going in, you've got the state of Michigan
pumping money in there and you've got GVSU (Grand
Valley State University) - there's just a lot of positive
momentum going on, and we're excited to be a part
of it," said Gillespie.
Renee Webster, a commercial realtor with Gillespie
Development who is leasing the SmartZone project,
agrees that Muskegon is a developer's dream.
"This will change the face of downtown, and that's
our focus," she told MiBiz.
Gillespie hopes his SmartZone project will draw positive
attention to both his company and the area.
"We thought this was a unique opportunity for
us to get involved with. It's going to be a pretty
dynamic development, and since it's going to be the
entry to the whole SmartZone, we really want to do
it right," said Gillespie.
While Gillespie does all its own construction and
project management, the company did seek assistance
from Winter Park, Fla.-based Fugleberg Koch Architects,
a firm that specializes in creating a vintage look
for new buildings, to design the SmartZone apartments
and office space. The first floors together will offer
about 26,000 square feet of retail and office space.
Gillespie said he has spoken with both a middle market
and a fine dining restaurant, as well as a bar and
an insurance agency that are interested in renting
space. Other tenants he hopes to attract to the SmartZone
include additional restaurants, banks, a flower boutique
shop and a coffeehouse.
"With all the activity that's going to go on
there, people are going to need a gathering place,"
he said.
Construction is expected to begin by late summer of
next year, although the exact start date hinges on
the completion of the new Shoreline Drive extension.
Gillespie said the roadwork project will take 8-12
months to complete.
COPYRIGHT 2002. MIBIZ NETWORK.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This article appeared in the December 16, 2002 issue
of MiBiz, read by upper management executives in West
and Southwest Michigan. Print subscriptions are free
to qualified individuals who do business in West and
Southwest Michigan. For further information about
MiBiz Network, visit www.mibiz.com
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