Blandford Nature Center launches public phase of $10.3 million campaign

Blandford Nature Center launches public phase of $10.3 million campaign

Grand Rapids-based Blandford Nature Center has launched the public phase of its $10.3 million expansion, renovation and endowment campaign.

The campaign, known as Growing Up Blandford, has raised nearly $8 million so far through local foundations and philanthropists. Blandford is now turning to the public for the remainder.

Roughly $7 million of the campaign will support an endowment, while $3.3 million is going toward the nature center’s new 11,000-square-foot visitor center and renovation of existing buildings. The new center will feature a 2,160-square-foot auditorium with the capacity for 275 people, along with an outdoor amphitheater, wet lab, wildlife center and various other new resources, as MiBiz previously reported.

“This campaign, and the success we’ve had so far, is a real testament to how deep Blandford’s roots run in this community,” Jason Meyer, president of Blandford Nature Center, said in a statement. “It seems like everyone I have talked to has been touched by the nature center in one way or another in their lives, and now is the time for us all to stand up and support Blandford’s growth.”