SVRC Marketplace Awarded for Outstanding Building Preservation

Saginaw’s SVRC Marketplace is receiving an award for outstanding building preservation from the Michigan Preservation Network. The MPHN Building Award recognizes excellence in the interior and exterior restoration of historic structures. The SVRC Marketplace is a 100,000 square foot mixed-use facility in downtown Saginaw that opened in 2018, housed in the former Saginaw News building.

Saginaw-based Spence Brothers originally constructed the building in 1960, and also was construction manager for the $22 million redevelopment. Saginaw-based WTA Architects designed the new facility, which honors the building’s historic finishes. Key architectural features were identified, carefully cleaned and preserved as part of the renovation, including elevator lobbies on each floor, outfitted with Italian marble walls and travertine floors. The project also included a massive undertaking to remove asbestos-containing sealent throughout the building.

Another notable feature that’s been preserved is the multi-story atrium that formerly housed the newspaper’s printing press and is now the main seating area for visitors to the facility’s food vendors. The design team also decided to replicate an iconic sign that had been removed from outside the building. It was made up of cubes that spelled out the word news “News.” The new sign features cubes that spell out the owner’s initials, “SVRC.”