With its breathtaking views of Muskegon Lake and sophisticated scientific equipment, Grand Valley State University's new Lake Michigan Center will provide a center for study of one of the earth's greatest resources: the Great Lakes.
The Lake Michigan Center building, which serves as the new home for the Robert B. Annis Water Resources Institute, features a 24,500-square-foot research facility with two classrooms and four laboratories. It also houses administrative offices, conference rooms and classrooms. The site also includes docking space for research vessels, including GVSU's own W.G. Jackson.
The new facility was dedicated late Thursday, June 21. Speakersincluded retiring GVSU President Arend D. Lubbers, Governer John Engler, campaign chair Charles E. Johnson, Richard M. DeVos, state Sen. Leon Stille, and Muskegon Community Foundation President Chris McGuigan.
The dedication ceremony was followed by a reception and tours of the building.
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 new facility will accommodate the Lake Michigan: State of the Lake 2001, a follow-up to the successful GVSU symposium hosted in Muskegon in 1999.
