The University of Michigan Center for Innovation, Related Cos., and Olympia Development of Michigan broke ground Friday on Founders House, a new residential building for graduate student and faculty housing.
Located at 2205 Cass Ave., Founders House is part of the Transformational Brownfield Plan for The District Detroit, a 50-block sports and entertainment destination featuring residential, retail, educational, office space, stadiums, and theaters.
Founders House is located adjacent to the UMCI academic building, which is currently under construction and expected to be completed by summer 2027.
Designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects with Neumann/Smith Architecture as the Architect of Record, Founders House is expected to achieve LEED Gold. The approximately 235,000-square-foot residential building will rise 13 stories and include 313 residential units, ranging from studios to one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments.
UMCI will lease the residential building, which is anticipated to be completed in 2028, for an initial term of 40 years.
“This new 313-unit residential building for the UMCI represents the University of Michigan’s strong commitment to attracting and cultivating talent and innovation here in Detroit,” says Mayor Mary Sheffield. “Projects like this show what Detroit has to offer on a state, national and global level.”
The University of Michigan Center for Innovation will be a world-class hub for research, education, and entrepreneurship, designed to advance innovation and talent-focused community development and drive job creation and economic growth across the city, region, and state.
Located between Cass Avenue and Grand River and bounded by W. Columbia Street to the north and Elizabeth Street to the south, UMCI will, once complete, include a 200,000-square-foot research and education center, a technology incubator, Founders House, and approximately 1 acre of public green space.
The center was made possible by a $100 million gift from donor Stephen M. Ross, founder and chairman of Related Cos. in New York, $100 million from the state of Michigan, a land donation of 2.08 acres at the intersection of Grand River Avenue and West Columbia Street from Olympia Development of Michigan, and other donors.
For more information on The University of Michigan Center for Innovation, visit here.
