Just six weeks ago today, Saline Lodging Group closed on its purchase of East Michigan Avenue property where a new Best Western Premier hotel is being built. [1]
If you Follow Saline Journal on Instragram or have seen posts with the #salinehotel hashtag, a handful of photographs have been added since then to provide periodic updates on construction progress. After clearing the site of growth, earthmoving equipment leveled the property and brought sections on the south up to grade. [2,3]
The ground was allowed to settle, after which a gravel work drive was added to accomodate the movement of large trucks accessing the lot from Sauk Trail Court.
Then something far easier to miss but critically important happened. It was subtle. No sweat.
A rough footprint of the hotel was marked onto the dirt in bright orange paint.
For the first time, the exact placement and dimensions of what will become the Saline hotel became real. Today those guides are being used to dig and prepare trenches for building footers.
Just after two o’clock this afternoon, cement mixers began to arrive and the first pours were made. It made for a fascinating dance of coordination and efficiency among excavators, trucks, transits, and workers. Dig, frame, pour, reinforce, finish. Repeat. Lots of things happening in parallel, others in sequence — with details such as putting anchor hardware in place before wet materials set.
Temperatures in the mid-50s today were a welcome change from the snowstorm that welcomed Saline Lodging Group to its newly acquired location in early March. True, sprinkles of rain sometimes rose to the level of nuisance on this variably sunny and overcast second week in April. But none of this impacted the schedule.
During a discussion of progress with Saline Journal this morning, builder Jim Haeussler said that he expects things to begin “going vertical” in about a month.
References
- “It’s Official: City, Developers Complete Deal to Build New Saline Hotel” Dell Deaton (March 1, 2018) Saline Journal.
- “salinejournal” Instagram.
- “#salinehotel” Instagram.
