CMURC

SmartZone & Master Plan

Building the future of innovation: 300 acres built for business, talent, and long-term growth.

  • Visitors talking in the CMURC lobby beside a curved white brick wall hung with plants.
  • A woman working at a desk in a teal-walled CMURC office under a starburst pendant light.
  • Two people at a table beside a wall graphic reading Turn Visions into Ventures.
  • A staffed registration desk at CMURC Saginaw, a laptop open on the counter.

What Is A SmartZone?

SmartZones are innovation districts designated by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) to accelerate tech-based business growth. These zones bring together universities, municipalities, economic developers, and private partners to turn research, talent, and ideas into real-world companies.
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CMURC is one of Michigan’s official SmartZone operators. That gives us direct access to statewide funding programs, strategic partners, and entrepreneurial support services most communities simply don’t have.

So What Does That Actually Mean For You?

  • We have access to help facilitate connections to funding, like the Business Accelerator Fund and Emerging Technology Fund, to meet milestones.

  • You get access to mentorship, strategy sessions, and resources to turn ideas into companies.

  • We work directly with local universities, municipalities, and economic development partners to open real doors, not just offer office space.

  • You join a network built to help tech entrepreneurs and researchers thrive and connect right where their work happens.

Being in a SmartZone means you don’t have to build your business alone; you’ve got statewide programs and a local team backing you at every stage.

our master plan builds around business

While the SmartZone facilitates access to funding and business support, the MasterPlan gives you a place to build.
It’s a long-term development blueprint for 300 acres in Mt. Pleasant, designed by CMURC, CMU, and city partners.

This land is zoned and planned for

  • Glass office towers seen from below, a tree in the foreground.

    Office buildings for growing teams and headquarters

  • An empty industrial hall with exposed red pipework and a blue epoxy floor.

    Light manufacturing and industrial space

  • A busy food hall with pendant lights and red chairs.

    Retail and restaurants to serve the community

  • An aerial view of a new-build housing estate with pitched roofs.

    Housing from cottage homes to live-work hybrid buildings

  • A terraced grass amphitheatre in a park, trees behind it.

    Parks, green space, walking paths, and civic squares

The vision is three connected neighborhoods, so your employees can live nearby, your customers can walk in, and your team can grow without moving out of town.

Three Neighborhoods 
One Connected Vision

  • 630,000 sq. ft. of office space
  • 600,000 sq. ft. for light manufacturing or assembly
  • 915 sq. ft. of office space
  • $105,000 sq. ft. of retail and dining
  • 56 acres of parks, trails, and public squares
  • Availabe parks, trails, and public squares or light manufacturing or assembly of office space
  • A wood conference table with a vase of blue flowers, a glass partition behind it.

    Neighborhood A

    Front-facing, high-visibility space with retail, live-work townhomes, and a public square; ideal for startups, faculty housing, and community-first development.

  • A private office with a lime-green accent wall, a desk and a round meeting table.

    Neighborhood B

    Anchored by CMURC HQ, this is the innovation core: manufacturing space, business incubation, startup pop-ups, and surrounding housing.

  • An executive office with a curved desk, two cream armchairs and patterned wallpaper.

    Neighborhood C

    Built around established institutions like McLaren and Isabella Bank, this neighborhood includes park-linked housing, space for new employers, and room for recreation and industry to coexist.

Support When You Start
Space When You Scale

You’re not just getting land or a desk; you’re stepping into an ecosystem designed to move businesses forward.

  • You get access to resource and strategy, not just square footage

  • You can be part of a connected, mixed-use district

  • The land is already zoned and master-planned for flexible growth

  • This isn’t a solo project; CMURC and CMU are building this with you

Want To Grow Here?

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