GRAND RAPIDS -The Icon on Bond condominium project is moving along nicely toward completion at the end of this summer.

Exterior brick-work is complete, tile work has started, drywall is being finished, and electrical and plumbing rough-in is ongoing. Down from a peak of about 125, some 75 Hardhats are currently working on the all-union job.

"Everybody is doing a great job," said David Moore, project superintendent for Wolverine Construction Management. "We're very happy with the work we're seeing from the tradespeople."

The nine-story, $118-unit residential development is being erected on the brownfield site of an old foundry, and will help anchor the transformation of the city's Monroe North Business District. Moch International is the developer.

When finished, the Icon on Bond (Street) will offer condos ranging in size from 728 square feet to 1,418 square feet. The development will feature outdoor balconies, views of the Grand River and the downtown skyline, nine-foot ceilings, and personal laundry. Development plans also call for a community room with a 12-seat movie theatre, as well as exercise, conference, and office space. Units will range in price from the low $200,000s to $420,000.

Moore said units will have ceiling heights of nine feet, with 10-inch thick, cast-in-place concrete floors. Drywall walls will be two inches thick. High-end finishes are being installed throughout. "I could be a salesman for this place," Moore said. "It's going to be the best-built condominium project in Grand Rapids."

THE NINE-STORY Icon on Bond condominuim building. The partial use of union pension dollars to fund the project has assured the use of all-union trades.

PULLING NO. 4 meter bank wire on the first level of the Icon on Bond job is Scott Kavner of IBEW Local 275 and Newkirk Electric.