Eye Candy of the Week: 934 Clark St., Lansing

This month’s Eye Candy is in the center of a residential neighborhood on Lansing’s north side. The building was constructed in 1913 as a bakery, then later as Lansing Lithography for 60 years before falling into disrepair. The 1913 origin date is consistent with the building’s façade of rusticated concrete block. It was a look that was common in the early part of the twentieth century due to innovations in cement making, which allowed builders of that era to be able to press the concrete blocks directly at the building site rather than having to ship them to the site. The textured appearance of the concrete blocks was made to resemble natural stone. The featured Eye Candy was redeveloped by Kincaid Building Group in partnership with Studio Intrigue Architects a decade ago. The Ingham County Land Bank facilitated the abandoned building’s sale as a brownfield redevelopment project. The exterior improvements included keeping the unique concrete block; however, it was given a facelift with new, lighter-colored paint. The windows were replaced with energy-efficient, period-appropriate-looking ones in a contrasting black frame. The entrance became a focal point with its two-story glass entry; the steps were reoriented to create a larger landing pad at the top. Sputnik chandeliers glow from behind the glass windows, further drawing one’s gaze inward.

“Eye Candy of the Week” is our look at some of the nicer properties in Lansing. It rotates with Eyesore of the Week and Eye for Design. If you have a suggestion, please e-mail eye@lansingcitypulse.com or call Berl Schwartz at 999-5061.

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