Administrators, politicians, and donors ceremonially begin work on Tech’s newest building
On Friday, Oct. 2, the groundbreaking ceremony was held for the incoming Chang K. Park Wellness Center, to express thanks to donor Chang Park and properly introduce the new building. The new building will feature facilities dedicated to mental and physical wellness for the student community. Plans to address disruptions to on-campus parking caused by the construction are currently in development.
The ceremony began with University President Dr. Richard Koubek welcoming everyone to the event. He thanked Park for his sizable $55 million donation, stating that it was a “generational event” for the university. He also thanked the architect team from Perkins&Will and the builders from Findorff.
Michigan Representative and MTU alumnus Greg Markkanen spoke on how the center will be “instrumental” to future Michigan Tech students. Board of Trustees Chairman Jon Jipping, who followed after, talked about how “world-class rigor requires world-class support” and how this center will be a “legacy to support future Huskies.” Vice President of Student Affairs Laura Bulleit spoke about the overall impact on students, stating that the project was a “dream come true.” She talked about how the building was designed under Michigan Tech’s “Be Well” initiative: live well, play well, connect well, and recharge well. Finally, Park, a philanthropist and MTU alumnus, spoke about his donation, which is projected to fully fund construction for the building.
The Park Center will have four floors: the bottom two dedicated to mental health and the top two to physical health. Students will have free access to the building and its facilities while enrolled.
The first floor of the building is expected to be similar to the current H-STEM building, with a lounge designed to give students a place to complete assignments, study, and de-stress. The lobby will feature an electric fireplace and indoor trees to add year-round greenery in the study spaces. The university is additionally partnering with UP Health System to give the students an on-campus clinic, which will provide urgent care services to the students, with the school aiming for open hours around 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. There will also be a quiet room students can use for meditation, prayer, or just a silent place to rest.
The second floor will feature therapy offices, previously located on the third floor of the Administration building, where there will be a more spacious and private waiting area. It will also include two classrooms with windows that overlook the first floor atrium.
The third and fourth floors of the building will be dedicated to a brand new workout space. There will also be cubby space for weekly attendees and lockers for rent for longer periods of time, and showers for students to use. The third floor will contain equipment for cardio workouts, such as ellipticals, treadmills, and bikes, while the fourth floor will contain machines for weight training. The fourth floor will also include dedicated private workout rooms. The fitness floors will be staffed by students, with no current plan for the building to be open 24/7.
Chang K. Park graduated in 1973 with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and a B.S. in Engineering Administration. He is currently the CEO of Universal Remote Control, a company he founded over 30 years ago.
The building is being built upon Lot 11, the location where the school previously planned to build a parking garage, according to the Campus Master Plan. The school is still working on figuring out a way to mitigate the disruption in parking this new building will cause. There will be a town hall on Oct. 27 with Transportation Services, the Undergraduate Student Government (USG), and the Graduate Student Government (GSG) to go over what these changes will look like and make sure the students’ voices are represented in whatever changes they will make.
The building is expected to be complete by Fall 2028. Construction of the building will pause during the winter months and resume the following March. For more information, visit mtu.edu/well-being/chang-park-center/, or to view the construction progress, visit mtu.edu/webcams/chang-park-center/.
