Kalamazoo County

Gull Road Justice Complex

Kalamazoo, Michigan // 82,000 sq. ft.

Kalamazoo County’s recent Facilities Master Plan (FMP) identified the need for a new Family Court Facility in order to better serve the community. The County had purchased a vacant parcel of land adjacent to the Juvenile Home on Gull Road, and their overall vision for the project entailed relocating family-related judicial services onto the site, creating a campus that improves operational collaboration through efficiencies in space, design, and function.

Prior to designing the new Family Court, TowerPinkster led judicial space planning efforts for the development of Kalamazoo County’s Facilities Master Plan. Square footage needs, efficiencies, and adjacencies were analyzed for several departments, and the team recommended a solution that reduces the county’s non-jail square footage to four main locations.

TowerPinkster worked closely with the County and programming/design partner, HOK, to create a design that incorporates Family and Probate Courts, Friends of the Court, and Prosecutor’s offices. The design concept aimed to create a building that conveys both significance as well as openness to visitors.

A two-story, curved blue insulated glass curtain wall that stretches the length of the public corridors accentuates the open feeling. On the south facade, the use of bricks with punched openings blends the exterior with a nearby residential community and the adjacent juvenile home. The exterior building materials were carefully selected to tie to the adjacent Juvenile Home while also blending with the surrounding neighborhood. This project was finished on time and under budget.

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