UPHP headquarters moving to Liberty Way

Posted by Lake Superior Community Partnership on August 19, 2015

MARQUETTE – The transformation of the Liberty Way campus from abandoned bakery to a fully functioning mixed use development will soon be complete.

Upper Peninsula Health Plan (UPHP) and the Veridea Group announced today that they have entered into a purchase agreement for the final parcel on the site where a new headquarters will be constructed for the Marquette-based health plan.

Officials from the two organizations said the purchase agreement was signed on August 14, and calls for UPHP to own just under an acre of the campus. Veridea Group will act as the Project Manager, overseeing the design and construction of the approximately 28,000 square foot office building.

“We are very pleased that UPHP chose the Liberty Way campus as the site of its new headquarters,” said Michele Thomas, Veridea Director of Commercial Real Estate. “As developers, it gives us a sense of satisfaction to contribute to the growth of a great local company.”

Both parties expect the sale, which is contingent on the approval of the Marquette County Brownfield Authority and the City of Marquette, to be finalized in early September. Groundbreaking is planned for October 1, and plans for occupancy are for August, 2016.

UPHP began with an office staff of six employees in 1998 and has since grown to 130 employees. UPHP President and CEO Dennis Smith said the site was chosen after an extensive search throughout the area for the ideal location to house the growing company.

“We needed a place that would house all of our employees and also have room to accommodate future growth,” Smith said. “This site offered us the ability to build just what we needed. Its location adjacent to the new (Upper Peninsula Health System) hospital made the decision that much easier.”