Preview! The Michigan Union Renovation

January 9, 2020 /

A sneak peek! With just a couple of days before the grand re-opening of the Michigan Union, here’s a brief look inside the historic, nearly renovated, campus building. A few more photos from the tour:

A while ago they removed the ivy growing on the State Street side of the building, and now you can see the statues of ‘The Athlete’ (left, looking down toward the athletic campus) and ‘The Scholar’ looking toward central campus.

The original 1919 building including bowling alleys. They were removed years ago but they held onto the wood from the lanes…

..and built these kick ass tables upstairs in the ‘Idea Hub.’ I believe this is the same room where the billiards/pool room used to be (sorry, it’s gone bro)

An example of a doorway they found during the renovation – it was hidden behind a layer of drywall or plaster from a previous remodeling.

This tricked out fireplace sits between the ‘Willis Ward Lounge’ and the spanking new ‘South Lounge’

On the floor of my favorite space, this brass block M preserved from upstairs in the Union. They wanted to create the feel of “an indoor Diag” in the new Courtyard. They hit the mark here.

This plaque outside the north entrance refers to “stored documents” pertaining to the history of the Union. Cool right? Except multiple attempts to retrieve this trove have come up with nothing! Including during the current renovation /sadface

Just a desk, right? Well – a little more than this. This info desk was moved to the original hotel check-in desk (the Union used to have a bunch of hotel rooms upstairs). I just think it’s cool that someone walking in from the 1930s might recognize this space.

Notes

More on the Union and its ties to U-M athletics
Black and Blue – The Story of Gerald Ford, Willis Ward and the 1934 Michigan-Georgia Tech Football Game
The Michigan Union button – A Lost Tradition
Check out all the Meechigan History videos on my YouTube Channel.