The facility will be the new home of the university's Annis Water Resources Institute, and is expected to trigger additional development along the lake, which is a water gateway to Lake Michigan and the rest of the Great Lakes.
Community leaders, elected officials, and GVSU faculty and staff took part in an afternoon of festivities, which included a flotilla to welcome the project, a Coast Guard fly-over, tours of the university's research vessels, and music from Muskegon High School's Big Red Pep Band.
It's impossible to overstate the importance of the Lake Michigan Center to the Muskegon area, said Charles E. Johnson II, chairman of the Lake Michigan Center Campaign Committee.
This Center will help make Grand Valley a world leader in freshwater research, said State Senator Leon Stille (R-Spring Lake), who helped land a $1 million state grant for the project last year. The Community Foundation for Muskegon County also contributed $1 million.
We are proud to have advanced the many community partnerships that are moving this project to reality, said Arend D. Lubbers, GVSU President.
The total project campaign budget is $5 million. Chairman Johnson said the fundraising goal is within sight.
We urged the university to commence construction as soon as possible. We're ready to go, he said.
Plans for the Lake Michigan Center include a 20,000 square-foot research facility housing various laboratories, administrative offices, conference rooms, and classrooms.
Institute Director Ronald Ward said he expects construction to be completed in time to accommodate Lake Michigan: State of the Lake 2001, a follow-up to the successful GVSU symposium hosted in Muskegon last fall. We believe that a biennial program will help keep attention focused on Lake Michigan and its importance to our region, Ward said.
The Annis Water Resources Institute was established in 1986 to preserve, protect, and improve our natural resources. The institute conducts studies for county governments and municipalities throughout the state. Thousands of K-12 and university students study water quality issues each year through the institute's research program, which includes regular study trips on Muskegon Lake and Lake Michigan.
The larger of the Institute's two research vessels, the Muskegon-based W.G. Jackson, makes an annual multi-port research tour of Lake Michigan, including stops in Chicago and Milwaukee.
