The new makerspace at The Hawk in Farmington Hills is full of tools for sewing, woodworking, 3D printing, graphic design and more.

City officials haven't been able to find a similar community-run service and think it's unlike anything else in the country.

The makerspace recently opened on the second floor of the $22.5 million facility and was mostly equipped from a $537,000 grant Bosch Group, which is headquartered in Farmington Hills. The grant is the largest Bosch has given in the United States to date.

Because of all the large, expensive equipment in the space, officials expect DIY fans to take advantage of the tools they may not be able to afford or fit in their own homes.

"When we started to see The Hawk was going to be a reality, we understood that it was a very large building," City Manager Gary Mekjian said. "We knew that, in the high school, it already had an auto shop and a woodshop. We wanted to be able provide access to a facility like that."

Some of the big ticket items city staff expect people to be excited about include a laser wood engraver and a quilter.

"There’s a lot of quilters in this area, and a lot of people have to send their quilts out to be finished," said Rachel Timlin, The Hawk's cultural arts supervisor. "So, they’re excited to come in and learn how to use this. A lot of quilters can’t fit something like this in their house."

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Seasoned hobbyists can use the space after getting checked out on the equipment, and rookies can take courses to learn how to use the machinery. Staff will always be available to supervise and assist visitors. People can purchase daily, monthly or annual passes.

The city will welcome people with small businesses or side hustles, but equipment should be reserved ahead of time and some machines come with a time limit. Some materials will be available for purchase, but people are encouraged to bring in their own materials like wood, needles or fabric.

"What I would love to see is users talking to each other," said Jessica Guzman, The Hawk's visual arts supervisor. "There could be cross promotion, but also new ideas sparking up."

The makerspace's opening is part of a continual completion of The Hawk, which still has a vacant third floor. Mekjian said the city is still considering putting a business incubator on the third floor along with training facilities for Farmington Hills' police and fire departments.

In the year it's been open, The Hawk has garnered over 1,000 annual and monthly pass holders and averages about 2,300 daily pass holders a month.

At this point, The Hawk is not self-funded, and Mekjian said he's not sure it will ever be. Membership and pass fees from the center are part of the $7.5 million the city makes in annual special service fees, but about $2 million currently comes from the city's general fund to operate and staff the building. According to the city's 2022-23 budget, Farmington Hills expects to invest $16 million in The Hawk over the next six years.

"I'd love it to be cost neutral. I’m just not sure if that’s realistic," Mekjian said. "There’s a component that our special services department delivers to this community that can’t be measured just in monetary ways. There are social services there that you can’t monetize."

Contact reporter Shelby Tankersley at stankersle@hometownlife.com or 248-305-0448. Follow her on Twitter @shelby_tankk.