The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians (GTB) has officially closed on the purchase of the former Northwestern Michigan College (NMC) Boardman Lake Campus. The tribe announced the news via press release on Wednesday afternoon, reaffirming its plans to convert the campus into a new central government administrative center. The facility will “will support the delivery of Tribal governmental services” for GTB’s six-county service area, “including domestic assistance and other member services.”

The Ticker broke the news in December that the GTB had made an offer to purchase the Boardman Lake Campus from NMC. The college, which utilized the facility for many years as a hub for its university partners, had been considering new uses for the building after relocating those services to its main campus. The offer from the GTB, worth $27 million, prompted NMC to pull a request for proposals (RFP) seeking parties interested in leasing space in the building.

Per its press release, the GTB sees the Boardman Lake property as a way to provide government services “in a more centralized and accessible location for Tribal citizens.” Now that the real estate deal has closed, the tribe “expects to begin transitioning certain governmental departments and member services currently provided in Peshawbestown, Traverse City, and other county locations to the Boardman Lake facility in a phased and orderly manner.”

Beyond the building itself, the property also includes 28 acres of land, much of it with Boardman Lake frontage. GTB “intends to place approximately 26 acres into its land conservancy to protect and preserve the natural character of the property,” according to the press release. “The Tribe also intends to submit a fee-to-trust application to the federal government for the remaining two acres, the approximate area covering the present building and parking lot, in order to establish federal trust status for the site of the central administrative center and to ensure that the facility operates under Tribal and federal governmental authority for Tribal governmental purposes.”

While the GTB has not officially renamed the campus yet, the release noted that the tribe is currently consulting with its members “regarding an Anishinaabe name for the new administrative center that reflects the Tribe's history, culture, and the significance of the site.”

"This acquisition marks an important step forward in strengthening the Grand Traverse Band's governmental infrastructure and improving the delivery of services to our Tribal citizens across our six-county service area,” said Tribal Chairwoman Sandra Witherspoon. “The new administrative center will help us better coordinate programs, expand access to services, and create a central location that reflects the Tribe's long-term commitment to effective self-governance. We are equally committed to preserving the natural character of this property and to ensuring that this site serves Tribal governmental purposes for generations to come.”

While GTB is now the owner of the Boardman Lake Campus property, that doesn’t mean NMC will vacate the premises immediately. In his monthly report to the NMC Board of Trustees last month, College President Nick Nissley wrote that “significant time and energy has been expended to begin transitioning the College to a lessee role” in the building.

“The College has established a clear planning and decision framework to guide the ultimate relocation of our four NMC departments that are located at the Boardman Lake Campus (Extended Education, the Foundation, Human Resources, Business Office, and Strategic Initiatives, as well as International Affairs Forum and Office of Research, Planning & Effectiveness,” Nissley wrote. “Leadership has set a target to fully vacate the campus by December 31, 2026. A structured engagement process is underway to understand departmental work requirements and stakeholder needs before space solutions are finalized [on main campus].”

The purchase/sale agreement between NMC and GTB also carves out protections for Greenspire School, which has a lease on space inside the Boardman Lake Campus building that lasts through 2030, as well as a “tenant option” to renew its lease through 2035.