By Carol Stiffler
The newest building in the Newberry area is a showpiece, and it’s open for business.
The new Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Newberry Customer Service Center, located at 5666 M-123, is a 10,000-square foot building designed with nature in mind. Massive wooden columns and beams support the structure, while giant windows stretch nearly floor to ceiling.
The DNR welcomed architects, engineers, and political representatives to the new building last Wednesday, all gathered to celebrate one of Michigan’s first mass timber structures. The building is open to the public, which can continue to consult with wildlife biologists or purchase hunting and fishing licenses or fuelwood permits. A public grand opening will be scheduled in the near future.
Walbridge Construction Project Manager Jason Kuckuk said his organization was lucky to land the project. He’s taken professionals through the building and said they’re always impressed.
“‘This is a perfect building for the DNR’, they always comment,” Kuckuk said.
“Mass timber” is pretty much what it sounds like: layers and layers of engineered hardwood, bound together, and in Newberry’s case, using a cross-laminating pattern. The bound wood product is more than a foot thick, and the wood used in Newberry’s building is Michigan-sourced red pine.
The wooden beams and columns respond to heat and moisture, and some lengthwise cracking is expected and already visible.
The building’s huge windows are dotted every few inches with opaque circles to make the glass visible to birds and prevent bird strikes. The windows also flood the interior with natural light.
While mass timber is celebrated for its sustainability, it also brings nature indoors, promoting “biophilia” – the human desire to connect with nature.
“I would love to work here,” said architect Anna Anderson, who worked on the building design with the Lord Aeck Sargent firm.
Newberry’s mass timber building is part of a growing trend – both in Michigan and across the country. By the time the building was complete, several more mass timber buildings have gone up in Michigan. According to WoodWorks, the Wood Products Council, there were 2,427 mass timber buildings constructed or in progress in the U.S. as of March 2025.
Researchers at Michigan State University have been studying the potential for mass timber to become a Michigan industry and believes Menominee County is one of the two most ideal places for a mass timber production plant in the state; Detroit-area Wayne County is the other.
A future episode of “Wardens of the North” will feature the building, and Producer Evan Pittman and Wolf Creek Productions President Tom Nichols filmed last Wednesday’s ceremony and conducted on-site interviews. “Wardens of the North” can be seen on Animal Planet, and Pittman advised the episode may come out next year.
