By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Next week, Fifth Third Bank wraps up the renovation of its plaza at the corner of Lyon and Ottawa in downtown Grand Rapids. The plaza with its iconic clock tower is the traditional location of the Festival of the Arts Outer Fringe Stage and serves as the roof of some of the bank's offices. When employees discovered water leakage, bank leaders opted to renovate and waterproof the entire 53,000-square-foot plaza.
"We consider this building to be one of the nicest buildings in downtown Grand Rapids and we want to maintain a nice environment for our employees and a nice facility for our customers," says Al Druckenmiller, bank spokesperson.
Dyed concrete in shades of black replaces the original concrete. Brick pavers mark the building's main entrances. Updates to the north entrance created a new barrier-free access to the bank. Fifth Third declined to comment on the total cost of the project.
One goal was to enhance the plaza's visual appeal with color and greenery. Six planters await a colorful selection of trees and flowers, including red maples, crabapple, 'Cleveland Select' flowering pear, daylilies, and Bird's Nest Spruce.
"We're planning to add tables and benches for people to use during their breaks and lunches," Druckenmiller says. "The new planters are all low profile so people can sit out there and enjoy what's going on around them."
Source: Al Druckenmiller, Fifth Third Bank
Photograph by Brian Kelly
Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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