Statewide Carpenters And Millwrights Joint Apprenticeship And Training Fund Breaks Ground On $30 Million Detroit Training Center
The Michigan Statewide Carpenters and Millwrights Joint Apprenticeship and Training Fund has broken ground on the 147,000-square-foot training facility in the Oakman Boulevard area on Detroit's west side.
The new $30 million, seven-acre facility will consolidate administrative and training operations under one roof. Currently, operations are spread across locations in Warren, Ferndale, Livonia, and the downtown Renaissance Center.
WATCH: Site groundbreaking
The training space will include a 30-booth weld shop, flooring manipulation area, high bay space for carpenters and millwrights with an overhead crane, and state-of-the-art classrooms with smart board technology. In addition to training space, the building will offer meeting space for contractor symposiums, career fairs, and apprenticeship readiness programs, as well as space for community events.
"For Detroit residents, this school will be an opportunity to start a lifelong career in the skilled trades, debt-free," said Mayor Mike Duggan. "With all of the construction that is coming to Detroit, this school could not come at a better time."
"Our new joint training center in Detroit will be our largest school in the state and will ensure Michigan's carpenters and millwrights are the most highly-skilled in the nation, ready to take on any job," said Tom Lutz, executive secretary-treasurer of the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters and Millwrights.
"Additionally, we have met with members of the community several times, and we are excited to become good neighbors and an anchor in the community," Lutz said.
"There's incredible demand for skilled workers throughout our state, but especially in Detroit," said Donna Pardonnet, executive director of Architectural Contractors Trade Association and chair of the Training Fund. "This new training center is good for business and the economy. We're proud to partner with the union and the city to build this facility."
"This new training center will provide tremendous opportunity for every carpenter and millwright in our union, whether they are just starting out as an apprentice or a seasoned worker seeking professional development," said MRCC Organizing Director Kevin Klingler.
Construction for the new facility is projected to take a little over a year to complete. The architect for the project is SSOE Group and the general contractor is The Christman Company.
"The Christman Company is honored to be a part of this exciting project," said Joe Luther, Project Executive for The Christman Company. "We appreciate the quality of craftsmanship that the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters and Millwrights brings to every project and look forward to the day when this new training center will open, giving our brothers and sisters in construction a state-of-the-art facility."
"We have already begun our investment in the neighborhoods, repairing roads and sidewalks, and addressing blight," said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. "And now, workers are prepping the site for mass excavation and building the footprint of the building. This is a huge transformation in a well-deserved neighborhood. I can't wait to see what's next."
"Even a global pandemic can't stop a union carpenter or millwright," added Tom Lutz. "We know Detroiters have that kind of work ethic and mindset, too. We look forward to opening our doors in 2021."
SOURCE: City of Detroit
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