5 proposed demolitions coming to the University of Michigan campus in the next 25 years

ANN ARBOR, MI - A revamped North Campus. New housing complexes. An automated transit system.

The University of Michigan on Monday, Sept. 30, released its 25-year plan to transform its Ann Arbor campus through dozens of projects. This includes updated maps and preliminary illustrations for its Central, North, Medical and Athletic campus developments.

The university has honed its project ideas since Campus Plan 2050 was released in fall 2023, including how it will make room for certain developments. While many projects involve filling in surface parking lots and repurposing current buildings, there are a handful of proposed demolitions across campus.

Here are five demolitions that could come over the next quarter-century to University of Michigan buildings.

Read more: 10 ways University of Michigan’s campus could transform in 25 years

Mary Markley Hall

Mary Markley Hall, 1503 Washington Heights, is a dorm built in 1959 and named in honor of a distinguished faculty widow active in alumni affairs. While originally designed just for women, it has been co-educational since 1964.

Campus Plan 2050 eyes the site for potential future demolition in order to free up land for academic research and clinical expansion, officials said in the plan.

In addition, the redevelopment of the site and nearby area could accommodate visitors to Nichols Arboretum, officials said.

Multiple homes near Hill Street

The site of the old Elbel Field off Hill Street has already been cleared for the first phase of a $631-million student housing complex.

The second phase requires a few dozen homes to be demolished north of Hill Street and east of Fifth Avenue. The Board of Regents approved in May 2023 the spending of $75 million to acquire 49 properties for this second phase.

The two phases expect to add a combined 4,500 beds by its undetermined completion, with the first 2,300 to come by summer 2026, officials have previously said.

The housing complexes will include a series of small quads defined by traditional Collegiate Gothic brick and stone buildings, according to Campus Plan 2050 officials.

In addition, a nearby university library book repository east of Greene Street may be redeveloped to support the area’s needs, officials said.

University support buildings near Michigan Stadium

One of the bigger reveals on Monday’s updated Campus Plan 2050 involves athletic facilities.

Multiple buildings on Kipke Drive, the street that borders the Michigan Stadium parking lot, will be demolished over time, officials said. This includes buildings like the Division of Public Safety and Security Building and the Student Theatre Arts Complex.

The demolitions will make room for future development sites for athletics, officials said.

“The removal of the existing support facilities complex along Kipke Drive also provides an opportunity to introduce new green open spaces carefully coordinated with new development, allowing for an enhanced pedestrian environment and supporting stormwater management features and biodiversity of vegetation,” according to the Kipke Drive Area description.

The project has recommendations to transform the area around the stadium into a fan zone where fans can watch the television broadcasts of games in a lawn area.

Weidenbach Hall and Cliff Keen Arena

The project also calls for the demolition of Weidenbach Hall and Cliff Keen Arena off South State Street and East Hoover Avenue.

Weidenbach is the headquarters for the university’s athletic department, and Cliff Keen houses non-revenue sports such as volleyball and wrestling. The two demolitions aim to establish views of Ferry Field to recreate the original Ferry Field gateway designed by renowned architect Albert Kahn, officials said.

A proposed pedestrian bridge would link the university fan zone to Ferry Field to create a fan corridor on football game days.

The full Campus Plan 2050 proposals can be found here.

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