Van Buren Township, Michigan

8 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1 studio for group fitness classes, a full gym, an outdoor fitness patio, and an outdoor plaza programming space. In the preconstruction phase, Plante Moran Cresa was selected as the Owner’s Representative and Neumann Smith was selected as the Project Architect based on the feasibility study. Preconstruction services were then formally bid out and Frank Rewold & Sons was selected as the Project’s Construction Manager. Given recent struggles with the estimated construction budget because of the state of the construction market, the Township is looking at different revenue sources to help bridge the funding gap. Two community organizations have put forth generous contributions to the project: VBT Downtown Development Authority has committed $1.137 million to fund the Black Box Theater portion of the project, and the Van Buren Township Civic Fund has committed $1 million to help fund the teen center area and outdoor amenity space. The Community Center & Senior Center Improvements project will be formally bid out under the construction manager. Frank Rewold & Sons utilizes a proactive bidding approach and their construction expertise to identify specific areas within the documents where trade alternates might benefit the project, and write them into the work scopes. The project is currently in the design development phase with bidding slated to be out in March and April. “Hopefully, shovels will be in the ground by May, as long the funding gap is sorted out,” remarked McNamara. With so much exciting development news going on, it’s no wonder that Van Buren Township is catching the attention of people of all ages who are seeking a special place to call home. The new year certainly holds massive potential for this charming and progressive community. VAN BUREN TOWNSHI P , MI CHIGAN Entry canopy of the Community Center - Draft rendering, final design pending.