By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Longtime Grand Rapids businessman and developer Bob Israels is ready to develop the next leg of a one-million-square-foot revival of several former factories on the city’s West Side. The renovation of the former Drueke Game Factory at 601 Third Street depends on the extension of a Renaissance Zone currently set to run out in 2012. Renovation could begin this fall if all the pieces fall into place.
“We have a very strong tenant who would like to take about half the building and would create jobs inside and outside Grand Rapids,” Israels says. “There’s also a retail store from New York interested in the rest of the building.”
Israels plans to add a fifth level to the building if both prospective tenants commit to making the move, bringing the total square footage to some 120,000 square feet; if only one tenant signs on the initial renovation will be around 50,000 square feet.
“I plan to put $135 per square foot into the building to renovate it, over and above what I’ve already paid for the building,” Israels adds.
That investment could range between $6 million and $16 million.
The first floor has 18-foot ceilings, high enough to construct a gallery around the inside perimeter for offices overlooking the central main floor. Energy efficient windows will replace the ancient factory windows, and installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system is possible.
“The Renaissance Zone has helped us create businesses that wouldn’t have moved here without it,” Israels notes about the buildings he’s already renovated in the area. “They’ve created jobs that have created city income taxes that are greater than the property tax the city would have collected.”
Source: Bob Israels
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Deborah Johnson Wood is the development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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