The property is across the street from MSU for a very practical reason, Mike Wells, president and CEO of Jackson National Life, said during the opening ceremony Monday afternoon.

“We wanted the property almost on campus so, obviously, we got as close to that as we physically could,” he said. “We want to attract the best and the brightest from Michigan State and East Lansing in a highly desirable location.”

Jackson National Life invested about $10 million in the East Lansing office. Wells said he is happy with the investment.

“I could bring our shareholders in here and explain the rationale for (the building’s) value as a work center (and its) value for recruiting and retention,” he said.

MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon also was on hand to commemorate the opening, calling the partnership between Jackson National Life and MSU a mutual benefit for both entities.

“They had an idea about this kind of space early on in the process, and we said ‘we’ll do anything we can to help,’” she said.

Simon said this is one of the many ways MSU is working to keep young professionals in East Lansing after graduation and longer.

“We’re continuing to try to work with others to be here (in East Lansing),” she said. “We’ve also extended our work to alums around the country that are entrepreneurs and see if they’ll come back to this area — it’s a gradual process.”

Simon said she was impressed with the layout of the building.

“I’ve been to a lot of IT firms on the coast and, as I said, this space is comparable to those really cool spaces,” she said. “I think it’s important to have a sense of place. This isn’t really what you think of when you think of East Lansing.”

The city also plans to add more office spaces similar to the Jackson National Life building, East Lansing Planning, Building and Development Director Tim Dempsey said.

“We’ve talked about our downtown as more of a evening downtown, and one of the things we can see is more daytime population,” he said. “Through the Downtown Development Authority and our comprehensive plan, there’s been a lot more discussion about having more office use in the downtown.”

Although part of the building was feeling festive, work still was being done, similar to any other Monday.

Dietetics freshmen Myranda Castanon started working at Jackson National Life about two months ago.

She said she appreciates the company for catering to student needs.

“I love the flexible hours, and it’s a really convenient location,” she said.

Castanon said she thinks the uniqueness of the work space makes her more productive.

“It makes you very focused to work, and it’s not a very bland place to go to work,” she said. “I actually like coming here.”