Ann Arbor's
Expansion
Complete
The Washtenaw County Jewish Community Center
completes a facelift
and avoids a controversy with a tenant.
LONNY GOLDSMITH
Staff Writer
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12 Detroit Jewish News
"
west side for the pre-school.
The additions give the building
45,000 square feet, up from 32,000
square feet — half of what was origi-
nally planned.
"At first, we had planned for a
25,000-square-foot addition, which
would have cost $2.5 million," said
Margolis. "The residents who live
around the center were concerned
that a renovation that large would
be distracting. We raised $1.6 mil-
lion, and worked closely with the
builders to make sure we didn't go
over that."
The Ann Arbor JCC opened in
1986, moving into the Clinton
ollowing a two-year fund-
raising campaign and
another 15 months of con-
struction, patrons of the
Washtenaw County Jewish
Community Center finally have some-
thing to smile at: a completed build-
ing.
• The curtain was lifted off the $1.6
million expansion on Aug. 29 before a
crowd of more than 300 donors.
"It gives the center a totally new
look," said Nancy Margolis, executive
director of both the JCC and the
Washtenaw .
County Jewish
Federation. "I
think it will be a
busier, more
active place."
Margolis said she
expects a 10 per-
cent growth in
membership in
the first year and
a 30 percent
growth in the
pre-school.
Currently 600
member units
belong to the
JCC Executive Director Nancy Margolis addresses the crowd at
JCC, and 130
the center's dedication ceremony.
children attend
the pre-school.
Membership entitles people to par-
Elementary School in 1987 with 60
ticipate in pre-school and after-school
family units. Before the expansion, the
programs and to participate in the
HDS had portable clssrooms that
Maccabi Games.
had to be moved and replaced with
The building, located in southeast
real classrooms. The one lounge could
Ann Arbor, includes a new front,
accommodate only one meeting at a
time.
which has a lobby, new administrative
office space and meeting
. The Washtenaw County
rooms/lounges. There are also eight
Federation, Jewish Family Service,
new classrooms — four for the
HDS, Washtenaw County Jewish. News
Hebrew Day School (HDS) on the
and Jewish Cultural Society use the
east end of the building and four on
JCC as a base of operations. Only the