The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians is making great construction progress on a new multifamily building to provide housing for elders. The building, which broke ground in September, is nestled in the woods at the edge of an existing residential neighborhood in Manistee, MI.
While many of us have seen cold and snowy winters, Little River Band has been helped by a unusually warm winter, and construction is on schedule. Wieland has been a huge help working both quickly and diligently to stay on schedule.
As the project manager, I’m visiting monthly to monitor the construction progress and construction is halfway done. The roofing for the project has been completed. Exterior doors and windows are in place, and the building is now dried-in. The mechanical, engineering and plumbing systems are being installed, and the insulation and drywall has started to go up.
As the architect, our Travois Design team members worked closed with the Little River Band community to design a bright, comfortable, accessible space for the elders. Here are renderings from the design phase.
All of the apartments will be on one floor, and residents will have interior access to common spaces. The building design includes energy-efficient construction and equipment, and the building will be completely accessible for disabled residents and visitors.
A second phase of an additional 10 units is planned, and the apartment wings will be anchored by a community room. Design inspiration came from a traditional round room. The design incorporates different wood elements which nods to the rich logging history of the band.
Here are some progress photos.
Awesome!!!! Glad someone finally listened. Our elderly needed this.