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Designing an Ecosystem for Community Wellness

Initiated in 2020 and opened in 2025, LiveWell on Harrison has become a new civic anchor for downtown Flint, demonstrating how architecture can expand access to health, wellness, and community through the power of proximity. Fifty households call the building home while the Flint YMCA, Hurley Physical Therapy, and the Crim Fitness Foundation serve thousands of community members annually.

A More Connected Urban Core

Located on a long-vacant site at the corner of Harrison and Third Streets in downtown Flint, the 115,000-square-foot mixed-use development brings together workforce housing (Harrison St. Commons), the YMCA of Greater Flint, Hurley Physical Therapy, and the Crim Fitness Foundation within a single building. Developed by Uptown Reinvestment Corporation with support from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the project transforms a former surface parking lot into a community-centered destination for housing, recreation, healthcare, and social connection.

LiveWell on Harrison_Flint YMCA_Integrated Architecture_2639-B

Two Intersecting Needs

The project emerged from two intersecting needs. Downtown Flint sought reinvestment, housing, and walkable community destinations. At the same time, the YMCA of Greater Flint needed a modern facility capable of supporting contemporary wellness, recreation, and accessibility goals. Rather than addressing these needs independently, project partners embraced a more ambitious vision: create a place where the services that contribute to healthier lives could work together.

The project's defining design decision was organizational rather than aesthetic. Workforce housing, recreation, physical therapy, and community wellness programming are intentionally integrated within a shared environment. Residents have direct access to fitness and wellness resources. Physical therapy patients enter a building connected to recreation and preventative health. Community members encounter housing, healthcare, and wellness as parts of a unified ecosystem rather than isolated destinations. Proximity becomes an equity strategy.

A generous entry canopy marks the intersection of the residential and community components, creating a shared threshold for residents, YMCA members, patients, and visitors.

A light masonry base grounds the building within its urban context while dark metal panels and vibrant orange fins create an identity tied to movement, wellness, and community energy.

Fifty workforce housing units bring new residential density to downtown Flint while connecting residents to wellness, recreation, and community resources within a single destination.

Large expanses of glass reveal activity within the building and strengthen connections between interior programs and the public space.

Building Community Through Design

The YMCA serves as the social heart of the project, supporting recreation, competition, and everyday gathering. Visual boundaries are blurred between spaces, resulting in a layered environment where movement, recreation, and observation reinforce one another. Daylit fitness areas, aquatic facilities, walking tracks, and a soaring gymnasium support activity, visibility, and connection among diverse users. The gymnasium's large-scale FLINT mural transforms recreation space into an expression of civic pride.

“The new YMCA facility has had a tremendous impact on our community, already more than doubling our membership projections and allowing us to serve more families than ever before. It’s been incredible to see the building become a true gathering space — from families sharing dinner in the lobby to seniors connecting over coffee. Integrated Architecture truly shared our vision of building community through design, creating a welcoming space that brings people together every day.”

Janet Tweddle
Chief Finance and People Officer
YMCA of Greater Flint

The lobby's open plan, intuitive wayfinding, and visual connections create an environment that is easy to understand, reducing anxiety and supporting independent navigation for first-time visitors and daily users alike.

Overlooking the gymnasium, the walking track blurs the boundary between circulation and program.

Clerestory daylight, exposed structure, and visual openness elevate the gymnasium beyond a recreational amenity.

Designed to serve users of all ages and abilities, the aquatic center expands access to recreation, exercise, therapy, and play within a shared environment that welcomes the entire community.

The YMCA serves as the social heart of the project.

One Building, Many Demands

The project’s greatest design challenge was not form, but integration of its unique components. The design weaves distinct structural, operational, acoustic, and mechanical demands into a single building that functions as a unified destination for community wellness. This required a highly coordinated architectural response, with careful planning balancing various demands while maintaining intuitive circulation, operational efficiency, and a cohesive user experience.

Integrating Housing, Wellness, and Opportunity

More than a mixed-use development, LiveWell on Harrison demonstrates how architecture can integrate housing, healthcare, recreation, and wellness into a single solution that expands access, strengthens community health, and creates lasting public value. Now part of Flint's network of educational, cultural, and civic anchors, LiveWell on Harrison contributes to the continued revitalization of downtown Flint and a more connected urban core.