DETROIT | Development & Construction: Motown Lowdown [Archive] - Page 43

Docta_Love

Sep 27, 2017, 2:25 PM

Detroit-based contractors sought for $17 million hotel renovation, 80 other projects

By KURT NAGL
Crain's Detroit Business
September 27, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Hotel%20Savarine_actual2_i.jpg?itok=6RtrowbV

The historic Hotel Savarine in Detroit's Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood was once home to legendary beat writer Jack Kerouac. It has been vacant since the 1990s.

-Outreach event is 1-3 p.m. Thursday
-$17 million renovation planned for Savarine Hotel
-Renovations of neighborhood storefronts sought to boost curb appeal

A contractor outreach session is scheduled for 1-3 p.m. Thursday at Thinkers Coworking Spaces, 14346 E. Jefferson Ave. The free event is being hosted by D2D, Motor City Re-Store and Jefferson East Inc. with the goal of attracting Detroit-based contractors to bid on $20 million worth of work across 80 projects citywide.

"We need to see to it that Detroit-based contractors get the work," said Keith Rodgerson, program manager for Motor City Re-Store. "It's not just because we're using taxpayer money. We are using our resources to keep people in the city employed and to help generate money back into the city from having healthy businesses."

The local outreach is part of a broader goal of employing Detroiters for projects in which they can take pride, like Little Caesars Arena, said Charlotte Fisher, spokeswoman for Detroit Economic Growth Corp. A similar event a couple weeks ago for construction of the Pistons headquarters and Henry Ford medical facility drew about 60 contractors, she said.

The 80 projects being put up for bid this week largely include storefront renovations to boost curb appeal of neighborhoods around the city, Rodgerson said. Much of the emphasis is on the Jefferson-Chalmers neighborhood on the city's lower east side.

"Enhancing retail nodes along the corridor and helping to create an amenity for the neighborhood there" is the goal, Rodgerson said.

Detroit-based Shelborne Development Co. LLC is leading renovation of the Hotel Savarine in that neighborhood, with Jefferson East, also based in Detroit, as a partner with 25-percent stake. The historic "stag hotel" has fallen from grace since opening in 1926. The hotel closed in the 1990s and after a failed renovation attempt in 2006, it sits gutted and tagged with graffiti.

The plan, again, is to restore the building for housing, said Joshua Elling, executive director of Jefferson East. Construction is expected to begin late next year.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170927/news/640326/detroit-based-contractors-sought-for-17-million-hotel-renovation-80

Detroit bathhouse cleans up its act
North End sauna booted swingers, is investing in rehab work

By Nancy Derringer
Bridge Magazine - Crain's Detroit Business
September 26, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Schvitzexterior-main_i.jpg?itok=F5k6-4hH

....

The Schvitz was born in an earlier era, when hot running water was less common, and working people needed a place to get clean, relax and escape. It's being reborn in a neighborhood with many problems and much potential. Detroit's real-estate comeback is pushing north from the central city. Lynch's handsome house is only few blocks away, but the one across the street from the Schvitz on Oakland Avenue is burned; a nearby church is active, but with some boarded windows. The neighborhood could use some more viable businesses, but the last thing Lynch wants is to be just another yuppie gentrifier.

It will be a tall order, he acknowledges. The building is nearly a century old, its plumbing not much younger, its reputation falling somewhere between colorful and infamous. It won't be cheap; the current budget of $250,000 will do a lot, but not everything. Cash flow is a big question mark.

But the Schvitz is also a place its regulars have kept running for decades, one they feel connected to in ways they express in near-religious terms. It's a place of purification, of cleansing, a sanctuary where troubles are exorcised in puddles of sweat. It's a hard place to turn your back on.
....

The Schvitz reopens Oct. 1, with an open house for old and new customers, neighbors and the general public. It'll still be a work in progress, Lynch concedes. But in some ways, it's always been one.

....

The Schvitz's founding is rooted in Judaism; it opened in 1918 as a Jewish cultural and community center for the North End neighborhood. The basement was dug out later, when the steam room and a cold-water pool were added; tilework on the pool deck says 1930, and it was sometime around then that its clientele grew to encompass the Purple Gang, the fearsome criminal mob of the city's Prohibition era. The Schvitz was run by members of the Meltzer family from the 1930s to the mid 1970s. Rick Meltzer, whose father and grandfather were the proprietors, said during that time it was largely a men's club — ladies-only on Wednesdays — that served up steam, relaxation and big meals afterward.

"My dad always said the Purple Gang guys hung out there, but they didn't run the place," Meltzer said

....

By the late '70s, the club was following the decline of the city. It was sold to a succession of owners and entered an era many modern Detroiters have at least heard about, that of the infamous "couples night."

....

"The phone rang for weeks," said Jessie Nigl, the third party in the new management, who will supervise its daily operation. One day she let another employee answer, she said, lacking the heart to "disappoint another displaced swinger," and overheard her telling the caller, "This is a de-sexualized space now."

"We thank those people for helping keep the lights on for many years," said Lynch. "But it's time for something new here."

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170926/news/640276/detroit-bathhouse-cleans-up-its-act

Private investor group buys mostly vacant Lincoln Park Plaza

By TYLER CLIFFORD
Crain's Detroit Business
September 27, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Lincoln%20Park%20Plaza-main_i.jpg?itok=CIlyyeVi

Lincoln Capital LLC, an investment group based in Okemos, has purchased the 175,506-square-foot Lincoln Park Plaza from Lincoln Park Plaza LLC, Farmington Hills-based Friedman Integrated Real Estate Solutions LLC announced Tuesday.

The package includes 3574-3636 Fort St. in Lincoln Park.

Terms of the deal, which closed Aug. 22, were not disclosed.

The retail center is anchored by Ace Hardware and includes Dollar Tree, Check and Go, H&R Block and Hallmark Cards. It opened in 1955 — the first major shopping center to open Downriver, according to downriverthings.com. A Farmer Jack grocery store closed in the early 2000s.

Nearly 150,000 square feet of vacant space is available in nine storefronts in the complex, according to property manager and investor Mike Zhang of California's Bay Area. Zhang is one of more than five investors, the rest of whom were not named.

"The objective is to have those vacant spaces occupied. We welcome any new tenants that are interested in the locations and we will do whatever we can to rent out those spaces," he said. "We want to see this place come back where the neighborhood and people can come down for entertainment and more activities."

Zhang said the vacant spaces would be renovated based on tenant needs.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170927/news/640321/private-investor-group-buys-mostly-vacant-lincoln-park-plaza

Bloomfield Park redevelopment gets $24.7 million tax capture

By KIRK PINHO
Crain's Detroit Business
September 26, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/VillageatBloomfield-Main_i.jpg?itok=jTWqycOx

The Michigan Strategic Fund has approved $24.7 million in local and school tax captures for the Village at Bloomfield project in Pontiac and Bloomfield Township.

The $123 million project by Southfield-based Redico LLC and California-based Pacific Coast Capital Partners LLC, or PCCP, is a redevelopment of the Bloomfield Park project that failed nearly a decade ago in the wake of the Great Recession and created one of Oakland County's most prominent eyesores.

Redico and PCCP plans a mixed-use development that involves demolition of multiple structures on the site at Telegraph and Square Lake roads.

The joint venture plans 432 multifamily units averaging about 900 square feet each, 120,000 square feet of senior assisted living with about 100 units, a 106-room hotel, 237,000 square feet of home-improvement retail, another 89,000 square feet of retail space, a 1,050-space parking deck, almost 1,800 surface parking spaces and another 77,000-space-foot retail/commercial building. Another 21.2 acres of recreation/open space are planned, according to an MSF memo.

Crain's reported in December that the home-improvement component of Village at Bloomfield is expected to be a Menard Inc. store. In metro Detroit, the chain has stores in Wixom, Warren, Livonia, Chesterfield Township and Ann Arbor.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170926/news/640251/bloomfield-park-redevelopment-gets-247-million-tax-capture

The North One

Sep 27, 2017, 3:36 PM

The Uniroyal site is definitely a prime and beautiful location.

Would be great for a Brush Park part two sort of project; an urban neighborhood right on the river and right next to the bridge, I'm drooling just thinking about it. I hope they do what they can to keep the mature trees though.

Docta_Love

Sep 28, 2017, 5:26 PM

I like the idea of a multimodal logistics hub, it seems to already have a marine terminal and there is a major rail line on the other side of Jefferson not to mention I-75. It's strangely worded but there seems to be a no sit on it and wait clause written in with fines for noncompliance.

McLouth Steel site transferred to Wayne County Land Bank for Moroun redevelopment

September 28, 2017
Crain's Detroit Business
By KIRK PINHO

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/main_image/7961846/McLouth-main_i.jpg?itok=HwOUwexU

An 188-acre property in Trenton along the Detroit River has been approved for transfer to the Wayne County Land Bank for a redevelopment planned by the Moroun family.

The Wayne County Commission voted 11-3 Thursday to greenlight the transfer of the tax-foreclosed former McLouth Steel Products Corp. site so Warren-based Crown Enterprises Inc. can redevelop it. A 1 million-square-foot building on the contaminated site is expected to be razed as part of the $4 million sale and expected $20 million in investment over the next several years.

If that level of investment isn't made, Crown would pay the land bank $1 million. The agreement also calls for a $250,000 donation to Trenton at a later stage in the redevelopment

On Wednesday, county commissioners had a hourslong debate on whether the Morouns, who have been criticized in the past for their handling of their properties in Detroit and elsewhere, should be able to redevelop the site.

That depends on the company coming to an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on cleanup responsibilities at the heavily contaminated site at 1491 W. Jefferson Ave. on the north side of Trenton, Michael Samhat, president of Crown Enterprises, told Crain's on Tuesday.

Crown, which also owns the 76-acre site abutting the McLouth Steel site, could turn it into a multimodal logistics hub, a cluster of manufacturing plants, a finished car shipping center for multiple brands or an auto assembly plant, Samhat said Tuesday.

LMich

Sep 28, 2017, 5:27 PM

Wayne County is taking steps to make the soccer stadium happen at the fail-jail site.

http://image.mlive.com/home/mlive-media/width960/img/detroit/photo/2017/02/06/-690afa0fc68cad1b.jpg

County making moves toward soccer stadium over jail in Downtown Detroit (http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2017/09/county_making_moves_toward_soc.html#incart_river_home)

By Gus Burns | MLive.com

September 27, 2017

A Wayne County Commission committee voted to move forward to a Thursday full commission vote on a proposal for the Wayne County Land Bank to acquire a foreclosed lot at 5430 Riopelle, which is adjacent to the county's juvenile and family court buildings, near a new jail complex site proposed by Rock Ventures.

Cheryl V. Jordan, the Land Bank's executive director, said the plan is to convert the space into a county-owned parking lot for use with the justice complex, should the new jail development be approved.

I find it weird the Moroun's want to do something down in Trenton given that they basically have the Port Authority by the balls, and most of their existing warehouse infrastructure is in Detroit. Maybe they are essentially showing that the Gordie Howe is going to get done with this move; maybe they'll relocate their logistrics operations further downriver, which would give Detroit some room to breath. Who knows with them?

Docta_Love

Sep 28, 2017, 5:47 PM

Wayne County is taking steps to make the soccer stadium happen at the fail-jail site.

I find it weird the Moroun's want to do something down in Trenton given that they basically have the Port Authority by the balls, and most of their existing warehouse infrastructure is in Detroit. Maybe they are essentially showing that the Gordie Howe is going to get done with this move; maybe they'll relocate their logistrics operations further downriver, which would give Detroit some room to breath. Who knows with them?

Yeah it took me for a bit of a surprise my initial thought is okay they're just going to sit on it and see if they can't turn a profit with little to no investment. I think you are right about the Mouron's accepting the inevitable that they will lose their trucking monopoly with the construction of the Gordie Howe Bridge, to what end is a really great question though. They've made moves on the east side with the I-94 industrial park plan and the new logistics center for Jefferson North Assembly so this could be in line with recent expansion's in their holdings. I'd like to think that they have to be able to see that if ya can't beat em join em after their failed attempts so block the new bridge and they are expanding into new "markets" to diversify their portfolio but who know's with them is right i'm not gonna play arm chair shrink on this one. :haha:

LMich

Sep 29, 2017, 4:59 AM

The Detroit RiverWalk is finally being linked, and they are going to do it by going out into the river to bypass Riverfront Towers. This is a big deal.

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/4c3e8f997babe6490bc6a4db4da623d139b0576d/c=171-0-1065-672&r=x408&c=540x405/local/-/media/2017/09/28/DetroitNews/B99580548Z.1_20170928225136_000_G9A1LUUDK.1-0.jpg

Proposed RiverWalk link sits atop river, near the Joe (http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2017/09/28/detroit-riverwalk-new-link/106100982/)

By Louis Aguilar | The Detroit News

September 28, 2017

A proposed new link for the Detroit RiverWalk near Riverfront Towers would jut onto the river; a design that gets around the privately owned waterfront and connects West Riverfront Park with the larger portion of the 3.5-mile pedestrian/bicycle trail.

Preliminary designs of the link show a 15-foot-wide path built six feet in front of the waterfront property owned by the towers, a rental and condominium complex just west of Joe Louis Arena. The plans include an adjacent new marina that would be built by the owners of the residential complex, said officials of the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, the nonprofit that manages the RiverWalk.

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/5f60077c6a01380311f0277f8d3e9baaefbc07b6/c=138-0-1028-669&r=x408&c=540x405/local/-/media/2017/09/28/DetroitNews/B99580548Z.1_20170928225136_000_G9A1LUUDP.1-0.jpg

Theh hope to start construction in spring of next year. All funding has been secured, and all the property owners are on board, so apparently they've been working on this for sometime dotting all the I's and crossing all the T's. Oh, and this:

The other two properties the RiverWalk addition would traverse are owned by Detroit’s Downtown Development Authority (DDA) and the Platform, a private real estate group. The DDA owns the unused land between West Riverfront Park and the Riverfront Towers. The Platform owns a surface parking lot next to Joe Louis Arena and the Riverfront Towers.

Just a reminder that the JLA site will be highrise residential per an agreement.

animatedmartian

Sep 29, 2017, 2:02 PM

So glad to finally hear it. I hated how the riverwalk just ended behind the Joe and wondered if it would ever make it pass the towers.

Here's the steel work for the Shilona Hotel annex as of this past week.

https://scontent.fdtw1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/21768479_10154614427345882_6070241065330812747_n.jpg?oh=02545b55152d15abec4219b827f7754c&oe=5A80BE83

https://scontent.fdtw1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22045654_10154614427810882_6476421001143097398_n.jpg?oh=8e145f95cd567a794b3757fb3e940f57&oe=5A86ECFD

https://scontent.fdtw1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/21766694_10154614427405882_6416821121418840649_n.jpg?oh=1119b93908f043a00a453d0f5f425ffb&oe=5A503FB1
https://www.facebook.com/thekraemeredge/posts/10154614431980882

subterranean

Sep 29, 2017, 6:15 PM

Detroit is not fucking around.

40Kh-z_9FjA

Docta_Love

Sep 29, 2017, 7:39 PM

Damn that's a slick video.

New Atwater Beach on Detroit's riverfront seeks restaurants, retailers

By KURT NAGL
Crain's Detroit Business
September 28, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/atwater%20beach%20rendering_i.jpg?itok=q85KqnGG

-Food and beverage retailers sought for new beach development
-Construction expected to start next fall, completion expected in 2019
-Conservancy seeking more funding for the $1 million project

The Detroit RiverFront Conservancy is seeking restaurateurs and retailers for Atwater Beach, the new park expected to open on Detroit's riverfront in 2019.

The nonprofit issued on Thursday a request for proposals for those interested in being a tenant at the former industrial site that is to be turned into a "vibrant destination for people of all ages," according to a news release from the conservancy.

The RFP document can be found here:http://detroitriverfront.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/AtwaterBeach_MasterTenant_RFP_vF.pdf

Plans for the 3.2-acre parcel on Atwater Street, east of Chene Park and west of Stroh River Place, include a sandy beach, play areas for children, a shed and a floating barge. Repurposed shipping containers will house retailers, while the barge will serve as a concession area with seating and planters made of recycled vintage truck tailgates from Detroit automakers. There are even plans to convert a vintage van into a bar.

Construction, expected to begin next fall, is estimated to cost $1 million.

The conservancy has been spearheading the project since 2016 and is continuing to raise funds for it.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170928/news/640726/new-atwater-beach-on-detroits-riverfront-seeks-restaurants-retailers

LMich

Sep 30, 2017, 4:27 AM

http://image.mlive.com/home/mlive-media/width960/img/detroit/photo/2017/06/12/atwater-beach-renderingjpg-a7db8ab3155adbad.jpg

http://image.mlive.com/home/mlive-media/width960/img/detroit/photo/2017/06/12/atwater-beach-rendering-2jpg-e5662289884f3893.jpg

Docta_Love

Sep 30, 2017, 5:52 PM

Developers break ground on $7 million development for homeless veterans in Detroit

By KURT NAGL
Crain's Detroit Business
September 28, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Saint%20Rita%20apartments_i.jpg?itok=5B2Wq3eI

-Housing project is for homeless residents, with veterans given priority
-26-unit complex will have amenities and service support
-Project expected to be complete a year from now

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan and Central City Integrated Health Inc. broke ground Thursday on a $7 million housing development for homeless veterans on the city's north end.

The Saint Rita Apartments, which have been vacant for more than a decade, will be redeveloped into 26 units — each 750 square feet — for homeless Detroiters who have special needs, with veterans given priority, according to a news release from the city.

The project is expected to be complete around this time next year.

"The St. Rita project shows that as Detroit comes back, there is room for everyone," Duggan said in the release.

All units will be reserved for those earning 30 percent or less of the area median income, which is about $14,000 a year. Amenities at the apartment will include a library, computer lab and laundry room.

On-site support services will also be provided.

....

The project is Central City Integrated Health's fourth affordable housing project in Detroit and the second one specifically for veterans.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170928/news/640686/developers-break-ground-on-7-million-development-for-homeless-veterans#utm_medium=email&utm_source=cdb-afternoon&utm_campaign=cdb-afternoon-20170928

Its almost hard to believe now that Boston - Edison was struggling just a few years ago.

Historic Briggs ‘Stone Hedge’ mansion sells for $1.035M
Home to baseball history

Curbed Detroit
BY ROBIN RUNYAN
SEP 29, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qvudKygztCN-SNSQcMCVWFdtNP0=/0x0:1371x913/920x613/filters:focal(577x348:795x566):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/56920547/Briggs1.0.jpg

Another big sale has closed in Boston-Edison this year. So far we’ve seen the Charles T. Fisher Mansion sell for $1.25 million and the Motown Mansion sell for $1.65 million. Now their neighbor, the stately stone Briggs Mansion, has garnered $1,035,000 at sale after listing for $1,050,000.

The house was built in 1915 for Detroit Tigers owner Walter O. Briggs, and we can daydream about the baseball history this house holds. The stone house was designed by Chittenden & Kotting and Briggs lived here until his death in 1952. Carvings of baseball players line the library’s mantle. The recently renovated house has eleven bedrooms, six full and three half baths, nine fireplaces, an elevator, and so much history in its 9,500 square feet.

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/9/29/16388276/briggs-stone-hedge-mansion-sold

skyscraperpage17

Sep 30, 2017, 7:59 PM

Well damn. And this is just the beginning...

Christie, Lawmakers Plan to Offer Amazon $5 Billion Tax Break

http://observer.com/2017/09/christie-lawmakers-plan-to-offer-amazon-5-billion-tax-break/

Gov. Chris Christie and legislative leaders will offer tax breaks worth $5 billion to Amazon if it builds its second headquarters in New Jersey, a plan that would expand a controversial subsidy program.

The Legislature’s top Democrats and Republicans announced Wednesday that they back Christie’s plan to loosen restrictions on the Grow NJ program, carving out new exceptions for “transformational projects” such as the Amazon headquarters. Under a proposed bill, Amazon could receive $10,000 for each job it created each year for a decade, a rate that could cost the state $5 billion over the life of the project if Amazon lives up to its promise to create up to 50,000 jobs wherever it goes, according to a letter to Christie from legislative leaders. New Jersey has awarded more than $8 billion in economic subsidies since Christie took office in 2010.

Cribbzee

Sep 30, 2017, 9:03 PM

Hello all, long time viewer, first time poster. I had the chance to walk around downtown last week, and wanted to share some shots:

Shinola:
http://i.cubeupload.com/Z42RCp.jpg
additions from Woodward:
http://i.cubeupload.com/XpvqQd.jpg
http://i.cubeupload.com/TbTejW.jpg

Wurlitzer:
http://i.cubeupload.com/ImxAvj.jpg
Wurlitzer and Metropolitan:
http://i.cubeupload.com/aPcv8i.jpg
Metropolitan:
http://i.cubeupload.com/L8g0mV.jpg

Renovation along Woodward:
http://i.cubeupload.com/Zb8tfj.jpg

Capital Park Area--

Book Tower
http://i.cubeupload.com/xA5BeS.jpg
Capitol Square Building and Book Tower:
http://i.cubeupload.com/k5i4Yi.jpg
Capital Park Building and Brown Brothers/Lear building:
http://i.cubeupload.com/30pfEV.jpg
Farwell Building:
http://i.cubeupload.com/4mt5aj.jpg
Griswold Building:
http://i.cubeupload.com/tuBV3l.jpg
United Way Community Services Building:
http://i.cubeupload.com/SdwHez.jpg
David Stott Building:
http://i.cubeupload.com/lQH1Fb.jpg

Chrysler House:
http://i.cubeupload.com/xpoo8n.jpg

Random Shots--

Woodward Avenue panorama:
http://i.cubeupload.com/9W3mY1.jpg
Woodward at sunset:
http://i.cubeupload.com/LOucye.jpg
Grand Circus Park at sunset:
http://i.cubeupload.com/fMFDx3.jpg

The North One

Oct 1, 2017, 12:13 AM

Wow, welcome! And thank you for posting those great photos, a wonderful update!

SpartanTom

Oct 1, 2017, 3:16 AM

Great photos!

caldor120la

Oct 1, 2017, 1:49 PM

Cribbzee; Thanks for the posting the photos there great. Hope you will do more soon.

subterranean

Oct 1, 2017, 4:59 PM

Hello all, long time viewer, first time poster. I had the chance to walk around downtown last week, and wanted to share some shots:

Book Tower
http://i.cubeupload.com/xA5BeS.jpg

:slob:

mousquet

Oct 1, 2017, 5:33 PM

^ It's clean, huh! Lol.
Now that's the way to respect oneself.
Keeping stuff around clean.

Docta_Love

Oct 1, 2017, 8:32 PM

^ It's clean, huh! Lol.
Now that's the way to respect oneself.
Keeping stuff around clean.

^Well said :cool:

LMich

Oct 2, 2017, 1:47 PM

The yuppies and coming! The yuppies are coming! Really, I just posted this because while I understand that Midtown Inc. formally took over the marketing of New Center some years ago, now, so that it's technically a Midtown neighborhood. But it still tickles me that Woodward and Grand is now referred to right of the bat as Midtown. It's been New Center since the 1930's. Before you know it, Highland Park's going to be a neighborhood of "Midtown." lol

New indie furniture store Urbanum coming to Detroit's Midtown (http://www.freep.com/story/life/shopping/georgea-kovanis/2017/10/02/new-indie-furniture-store-urbanum-coming-detroits-midtown/714472001/)

By George Kovanis | Detroit Free Press

October 2, 2017

A new independently-owned furniture and home decor store that will sell one-of-a-kind antique finds along with current styles is scheduled to open in Detroit's Midtown in early spring.

At 1,800-square-feet it is to be located at Woodward, near W. Grand Boulevard. It's name: Urbanum.

The store's location in Midtown's New Center neighborhood is significant because it's a signal that more development may be creeping north from Downtown and to New Center. Apartment developments are under construction in New Center. The Fisher and Albert Kahn buildings are being renovated. The Detroit Pistons practice facility is set to be built.

Two years ago, Beaubien and her husband, Tim Costello, opened the craft beer store 8 Degrees Plato in Midtown.

I call it the "Midtown creep."

Docta_Love

Oct 2, 2017, 4:54 PM

Historic former First Presbyterian Church sells to UM Credit Union

By KIRK PINHO
Crain's Detroit Business
September 29, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/FirstPresbyterian_i.jpg?itok=EJhcrSdD

-UM Credit Union plans new branch on Detroit property
-Ecumenical Theological Seminary to remain as tenant
-Listing attracted interest from 32 possible buyers

The historic former First Presbyterian Church at 2930 Woodward Ave. in Detroit has sold to the University of Michigan Credit Union, which will let its current occupant, the Ecumenical Theological Seminary, remain in the building.

The credit union plans to build a 4,000-square-foot branch employing 12 people full time on some of the 2-acre property's surface parking, President and CEO Tiffany Ford said. Development timelines are being determined, and Ford said additional details are expected in the first quarter of 2018.

....

UM Credit Union was founded in 1954 and has $777.56 million in assets and more than 80,000 members, according to its June 30 financial statement. The credit union, which was represented in the deal by the Southfield office of Colliers International Inc., has branches in Ann Arbor, Flint, Dearborn and Ypsilanti.

....

First Presbyterian Church opened in 1891 at Woodward Avenue and Edmund Place in Detroit. According to Historic Detroit, which tracks Detroit buildings and architecture, the building was designed by the architecture firm Mason & Rice. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The website says the seminary was gifted the church in 2002, a decade after it leased the space from the First Presbyterian Church.

The property is one block north of Little Caesars Arena, which was built for the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Pistons. The arena anchors the Ilitch family's $1 billion-plus, 50-block District Detroit development project, which is planned to include office, entertainment, retail and restaurant uses when fully built.

It also abuts the City Modern project by Dan Gilbert and other investors who plan 410 residences for sale and for rent on an 8.4-acre chunk of the Brush Park neighborhood immediately to the south.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20170929/news/640821/historic-former-first-presbyterian-church-sells-to-um-credit-union

Detroit City Soccer Club is a lil better imo the whole soccer club part is little meh I'd like Detroit City FC or Motor City FC better. Anyways this seems like it's just prelim work grabbing up names and websites with an possible association with the brand their planning.
Gores' Palace Sports files federal trademark for 'Motor City Soccer Club'

By KURT NAGL
Crain's Detroit Business
October 02, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/mlsrendering-main_i.jpg?itok=8ZRn2Z-Q

-Federal trademark protection for name filed last Wednesday
-Corresponding web domain names registered on same day
-Points to plan for a Gilbert-Gores MLS team downtown

Palace Sports & Entertainment filed for federal trademark protection for the "Motor City Soccer Club" name last week and made a grab for five corresponding web domain names.

The Tom Gores-owned entertainment company moved to protect the name last Wednesday, which further points to plans by Gores and Dan Gilbert, founder and chairman of Quicken Loans Inc., to bring a Major League Soccer expansion team to downtown Detroit.

The email, itadmin@palacenet.com, registered last week with the domain site GoDaddy for new website names including motorcitysc.com, motorcitysc.net, motorcitysc.org, motorcitysoccerclub.net and motorcitysoccerclub.org.

The company filed in July for federal trademark protection for the "Detroit City Soccer Club" name and last year registered for more than a dozen related web domain names.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171002/news/640986/gores-palace-sports-files-federal-trademark-for-motor-city-soccer-club

Docta_Love

Oct 3, 2017, 3:14 PM

Film Exchange Building to hit auction block with $2.25 million minimum bid

By KIRK PINHO
Crain's Detroit Business
October 03, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/FilmExchangeBuilding_i.jpg?itok=5tT2-R4a

The Film Exchange Building in downtown Detroit is going to an online auction next month with a minimum bid of $2.25 million.

Sitting in the heart of The District Detroit at 2310 Cass Ave. at Montcalm Street, the Nov. 13-15 auction on ten-x.com will be an indicator of the interest in downtown real estate. Previous auctions of key properties in and around downtown, such as those of the Fisher Building and Albert Kahn Building in the New Center area, received significant attention but failed to yield the selling prices predicted two years ago.

The Film Exchange Building opened in 1926 and has been vacant since the 1970s, according to Historic Detroit, which tracks Detroit buildings and architecture history.

Theb building was designed by C. Howard Crane, who also designed the Fox Theatre, what is now the Detroit Opera House and several Detroit theaters that have since been demolished.

An entity tied to Detroit-based real estate company The Sterling Group paid $1.92 million for the property in 2014, according to city records. The approximately 84,000-square-foot building sits on about 0.44 acres, according to the online listing.

A similarly sized building just a few blocks to the southeast, the 75,000-square-foot Women's City Club at 2110 Park Ave. nearby, sold to an entity tied to the Ilitch family in January for $5.85 million, or $78 per square foot.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171003/news/641041/film-exchange-building-to-hit-auction-block-with-225-million-minimum

Ford community center to open Friday at east side Detroit school

By Associated Press
Crain's Detroit Business
October 03, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/main_image/7964296/cq5dam.web_.881.495.jpeg?itok=srU8eZkC

The Ford Motor Co. Fund is set to open its center on Detroit's east side that aims to help increase educational opportunities for students and access to services for neighborhood residents.

A formal opening at the Ford Resource and Engagement Center is scheduled Friday morning at Fisher Magnet Upper Academy. Community members can visit the center from 1-7 p.m. Friday.

A wing of the school has been converted into a community center. About 20 nonprofits will have rent-free space in the building. Grants from Ford will allow the organizations to offer free education, job training, food distribution and other programs.

It's a 5-year, $5 million investment, official said.

The center will be managed by the Detroit Public Schools Foundation. It's modeled after a similar Ford Resource and Engagement Center in southwest Detroit.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171003/news01/641021/ford-community-center-to-open-friday-at-east-side-detroit-school

Docta_Love

Oct 3, 2017, 10:29 PM

I had no idea this building was mostly vacant.

Cadillac Square building to be converted to 45 apartments

By KIRK PINHO
Crain's Detroit Business
October 03, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/LawyersBuilding_i.jpg?itok=eJ793_-4

-$7 million redevelopment to include 45 apartments
-Rents starting at $1,200 for studios, $1,400 for one-bedrooms, $1,950 for two-bedrooms
-Construction to begin in November, finish in September

A 40,0000-square-foot building on Cadillac Square in downtown Detroit is set for a $7 million-plus conversion into 45 market-rate apartments.

Construction on the Lawyers Building at 139 Cadillac Square is expected to start in November and be complete in September, said Mike Ferlito, president of Detroit-based developer Ferlito Group.

When finished, it is planned to have 18 studio units, 18 one-bedrooms and nine two-bedrooms with rents starting at $1,250, $1,400 and $1,950, respectively.

The 10-story Lawyers Building was built in 1922, Ferlito said.

According to Historic Detroit, which tracks Detroit building and architecture history, the Lawyers Building was developed by John Barlum, who also developed what are now known as Cadillac Tower and New Cadillac Square Apartments. It was designed by the Bonnah & Chaffee architecture firm, the website says.

It houses a 7-Eleven convenience store on the first floor and is vacant on the remaining floors.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171003/news/641081/cadillac-square-building-to-be-converted-to-45-apartments

subterranean

Oct 3, 2017, 10:42 PM

^ Good news, but that 7-11 facade is scandalous.

skyscraperpage17

Oct 4, 2017, 12:06 AM

^ Good news, but that 7-11 facade is scandalous.

Yeah, I am loving the look of that 7-Eleven. :cool:

animatedmartian

Oct 4, 2017, 1:49 AM

Not as bad as the base level of the Cadillac Square Apartments next door. It looks just plain neutered.

This historical pic (from the 1940s I think?) shows that the first floor of the Lawyers Building might have already been modernized by this point. Though it's hard to tell as there is a crowd in the square. There's quite a bit of interesting history about the buildings along Cadillac Square that seems often unmentioned compared to other downtown high rises.

https://digital.library.wayne.edu/digitalcollections/mirador_full.php?id=wayne:vmc36708_5&type=ImageView

Chris Stritzel

Oct 4, 2017, 1:51 AM

I love Book Tower! So happy to see it coming back to life! I was once in Detroit and was fascinated by it. At the time, I was surprised to see it sit abandoned.

animatedmartian

Oct 4, 2017, 4:20 PM

East Riverfront’s Stone Soap Building redevelopment plans revealed

https://i.imgur.com/h63g1h0.png

https://i.imgur.com/SrxNw1T.jpg

As part of the larger East Riverfront development plan, many of the dormant warehouse buildings in the district will be redeveloped. The first on the list is the Stone Soap Building; an RFP was released in March. Banyan Investments, whose main work has been in West Village and Islandview, has been named developer for the $27 million project.

Banyan plans to both renovate the building and add on three to six stories on top of the building.

The plan includes 63 new residential units, including condos and rentals, 20 percent of them (13 apartments) reserved for residents making 80 percent of the area median income (about $38,000 a year). 33 rental apartments will be in the renovated original building, built in the early 1900s, and 30 condos will be newly constructed. The building will include one, two and three bedroom units. It will also include a gym, pool, rooftop gardens, storage, and bike stations for residents.
https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/4/16421506/riverfront-stone-soap-building-redevelopment

LMich

Oct 4, 2017, 5:15 PM

Noice.

Looks like Henry the Hatter won't be moving far. The city was able to keep them; they'll be opening a store in Eastern Market across the way.

Henry the Hatter to return to Detroit with new Eastern Market shop (http://www.freep.com/story/money/2017/10/04/henry-hatter-detroiteastern-market/730885001/)

By JC Reindl | Detroit Free Press

October 4, 2017

Squeezed out of downtown, Henry the Hatter is returning to Detroit with a new location in Eastern Market.

The nation's oldest hat retailer will soon open a store at 2472 Riopelle St., according to a news release issued Wednesday.

Henry the Hatter had been down to just one location — 15616 W. 10 Mile Rd. in Southfield — after losing its lease in August to its former downtown Detroit store at 1307 Broadway, which dated to 1952. The hat business got its start in Detroit in 1893 and was originally owned by city native Henry Komrofsky.

Henry the Hatter is today owned by Paul Wasserman, whose father, Seymour, bought the business from Komrofsky's old business partner in 1948.

The North One

Oct 4, 2017, 5:47 PM

Looks like something Toronto would build.

Docta_Love

Oct 5, 2017, 3:03 PM

Interesting ... looks like the American Motors's H.Q. has gotten thrown into the land swap mix in relation to the fail jail and potential new criminal justice complex with the city receiving it from the county while the city provides the land for the CJC.

https://www.detroityes.com/mb/attachment.php?attachmentid=33266&d=1493596668

For those not familiar with it the former American Motor's HQ is on Plymouth between Greenfield and Schaefer, it served as the HQ American Motors - Jeep until they built the big, shiny & sticks out like a sore thumb American Center in Southfield. American was the #4 out of the former big 4 now big 3 or 2 1/2? Anyways they were bought up by Chrysler in the late 80's and the last American Motors product the Talon was discontinued in the 90's while Jeep lives on strong. If i remember correctly it was then CEO George Romney later governor, presidential candidate & father of Mitt another contender who played a big part in the new Southfield HQ before he retired and went into politics.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/AmericanCenter2.jpg/200px-AmericanCenter2.jpg

Proposed land swap between county, city another step toward Gilbert's jail site plan

By KIRK PINHO
Crain's Detroit Business
October 05, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/jail%20land%20swap-main_i.jpg?itok=8xSAnM_S

Wayne County and the city of Detroit have agreed to a land swap that moves the county into better position to forge to a deal with Dan Gilbert for the Wayne County Consolidated Jail site on Gratiot Avenue.

Under terms of the tentative agreement announced Thursday morning, the county would get ownership of a portion of a Detroit Department of Transportation property where Gilbert's Rock Ventures LLC is proposing to build a new criminal justice complex to replace the half-built jail at the foot of downtown. In return, the city gets ownership of the 1.4 million-square-foot American Motors Corp. site on Detroit's west side at 14250 Plymouth Road, upon which the county foreclosed in 2015. Wayne County Land Bank had planned to sell that property to a Commerce Township man, but the sale was canceled because he missed a payment deadline.

The Detroit City Council, Wayne County Commission and Wayne County Land Bank board must sign off on the deal.

Last month, the county commission approved extending a deadline to Dec. 1 to recommend a path forward on the half-built jail site, while keeping Walsh Construction's proposal to finish building the jail on the table. The county has said it is focusing its efforts on Rock Ventures' $1 billion plan to build a new consolidated jail complex on the DDOT property and build a Major League Soccer stadium and a trio of high-rises at the Gratiot site.

"This agreement gets us one step closer to a deal with Rock Ventures. Acquiring this land was one of the significant hurdles to Rock's proposed criminal justice complex," county Executive Warren Evans said in a news release.

The DDOT property involved in the swap does not include the bus system's terminal, but rather the land behind it, which means it will not affect DDOT operations at the facility, according to the release.
....

Gilbert, the founder and chairman of Detroit-based Quicken Loans Inc. and Rock Ventures, has offered to build the county a new criminal justice complex on the 13-acre DDOT property at East Warren Avenue and I-75 for $520.3 million, with the county being responsible for $380 million of the cost.

He and billionaire Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores are jointly seeking a Major League Soccer expansion team, which they want to have play in a $1 billion mixed-use development anchored by a stadium and three high-rise buildings for office, residential and hotel uses at the 15-acre consolidated jail site.

....

Under Rock's proposal, the consolidated criminal justice complex at Warren and I-75 would have a 2,280-bed jail, 25 courtrooms and five hearing rooms, sheriff's and prosecutor department offices, a 160-bed juvenile detention facility.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171005/news/641251/proposed-land-swap-between-county-city-another-step-toward-gilberts

hammersklavier

Oct 5, 2017, 3:43 PM

:previous: That is a beautiful building ... hopefully it doesn't get idiotically demolished.

LMich

Oct 5, 2017, 4:24 PM

It'll be likely the only thing that'll survive the eventual redevelopment of the site. It's a small part of the site (1.46 million square feet), and it's also basically the only architecturally significant part of the site.

Here is the site soon after completion. You can make out the office building in the front:

https://abandonedrelics.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/amc-headquarters-historic-aerial.jpg
Abandoned Relics (https://abandonedrelics.wordpress.com/2016/10/29/amc-headquarters-in-detroit/)

skyscraperpage17

Oct 5, 2017, 10:56 PM

Detroit aims to get in Bezos' ear on the ears of Harbaugh, Dantonio

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/headsets_i.jpg?itok=kwgwJxPk

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171005/news/641321/detroit-aims-to-get-in-bezos-ear-on-the-ears-of-harbaugh-dantonio

The team trying to lure Amazon.com Inc.'s HQ2 to Detroit is taking to the football field to get attention for the effort.

Both UM head coach Jim Harbaugh and MSU head coach Mark Dantonio will don headsets with the Twitter hashtag #AmazonDetroit on each earpiece for Saturday's nationally-televised game at Big House in Ann Arbor.

skyscraperpage17

Oct 5, 2017, 10:58 PM

Detroit's Amazon HQ2 bid committee list includes who's who in business, politics

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171005/news/641296/detroits-amazon-hq2-bid-committee-list-includes-whos-who-in-business

In a show of regional cooperation for Detroit's bid, Duggan is joined by is Big Four counterparts — Wayne County Executive Warren Evans, Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson and Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel.

Statewide and regional political leaders include Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, U.S. Sens. Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, U.S. Reps. Mike Bishop, Debbie Dingell, Dave Trott and Brenda Lawerence.

On the business end, Gilbert and his team of employees at Quicken Loans Inc., Bedrock LLC and Rock Ventures LLC are getting assistance from executives from DTE Energy, Huntington Bank, General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Detroit's hospitals.

hammersklavier

Oct 5, 2017, 11:37 PM

Docta_Love

Oct 6, 2017, 12:30 AM

$125 million plan would rehab commercial corridors across Detroit

By TYLER CLIFFORD
Crain's Detroit Business
October 05, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Corridor%20improvement%20map-02_i.jpg?itok=ZYXCVJPv

-City would "beautify" 22 miles of storefronts, attract businesses, pave walkable streetscape
-Plan calls for selling $125 million in bonds
-Duggan's office will submit proposal to City Council

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan on Thursday announced a $125 million plan to revitalize nearly two dozen commercial corridors in neighborhoods across the city.

The plan would "beautify" 22 miles of storefronts, attract businesses and pave walkable streetscapes in 23 commercial corridors that can help recapture an estimated $2.6 billion that residents spend at businesses outside of the city, Duggan said, citing a Detroit Economic Development Corp. study to be released soon.

"There are 23 areas where we've got strong neighborhoods and vacant storefronts," he said at a news conference near McNichols Road and Livernois Avenue. The study said the local retailers could capture $215 million in annual revenue.

"We think if we rebuilt the streetscape to make it friendly and walkable we can speed up the recovery of the area," the mayor said.

The plan calls to sell $125 million in bonds, earmarking $80 million for infrastructure improvements and $45 million for existing plans to fix 300 miles of city roads and sidewalks. With taxpayers slated to pay increasing gas tax and car registration fees over the next three years, the first-term mayor said the city would use its share of the revenue to fund the projects without dipping into the general fund or existing road improvement money to cover the projects.

....

If approved, crews would begin surveying targeted neighborhoods early next year to prioritize benefiting areas. Construction work is planned to begin in late 2018.

Duggan said the Fitzgerald neighborhood along the McNichols corridor, where 115 houses are getting a $4 million rehab, will be one of the first areas to see work done and expects it to be complete by early 2020. The program is planned to be completed by 2023.

The commercial corridor revitalization project would coincide with a $193 million budget to fix 300 miles of major roads, residential streets and sidewalks, a news release said.

....

Responding to some concern that the investments would lead to gentrified neighborhoods, Duggan's Media Relations Director John Roach said the program aims to keep Detroiters in their homes and attract more to the neighborhoods.

"About 600 still live in Fitzgerald, even it has gone down over the years. But rather than clear out and build something new, we want to build walkable streetscapes for the neighborhoods," he told Crain's. "Everything we are doing is to make a better city for residents that have lived here for years and have stuck it out.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171005/news/641336/125-million-plan-would-rehab-commercial-corridors-across-detroit

The North One

Oct 6, 2017, 1:52 AM

Better render of Statler from Daily Detroit. I actually like the black facade.

http://www.dailydetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/cca-cbd-rendering.jpg

Site prep

http://www.dailydetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/daily-statler.jpg
http://www.dailydetroit.com/2017/09/27/pics-work-revs-old-statler-hotel-site/

animatedmartian

Oct 6, 2017, 3:50 AM

What once was a no man's land is now after 2 years an achor of activity between Downtown and Midtown.

zMcyVaL51JU

LMich

Oct 6, 2017, 5:54 AM

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Corridor%20improvement%20map-02_i.jpg?itok=ZYXCVJPv

What is being marked "city-owned" here? I thought maybe they meant the buildings, but that can't be. If they are talking about the streets, of course they are city streets. Weird.

Anyway, glad to hear about this.

skyscraperpage17

Oct 6, 2017, 12:42 PM

As far as those who think Detroit's lack of transit will be deal breaker, it should be noted, Detroit was ranked at the bottom amongst major cities with 3+ million people for traffic congestion.

http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2017/02/21/detroit-traffic/98200610/

In this instance, the fact that Detroit is not a normal city (which is what Amazon's proposal is based on) could work in our favor.

Gilbert really needs to push this fact to Bezos in his Amazon proposal. If someone on here talks to Gilbert (or is able to reach him), please put this bug in his ear.

LMich

Oct 6, 2017, 1:24 PM

Curbed Detroit had a concept (https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/6/16431440/commercial-corridor-improvement-plan) for what the city is aiming for for its streetscape improvement plan. This is a concept for 6 Mile:

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/zk-9UaOO7_zMoZpsdw16g2s9TvM=/0x0:1479x824/920x613/filters:focal(622x294:858x530)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57029575/McNichols.0.png

It'd be kind of amazing if they can make even one or two features of this actually happen.

Docta_Love

Oct 7, 2017, 7:00 PM

UM-Dearborn to open $90 million engineering building by fall 2020

By KURT NAGL
Crain's Detroit Business
October 05, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/um%20engineering%20lab-main_i.jpg?itok=6SaczcZC

The University of Michigan-Dearborn is planning a $90 million project to redevelop an engineering building by fall 2020.

The 120,000-square-foot building on the northeast side of campus will include laboratories for cybersecurity, robotics, bioengineering, human factors and power engineering, according to a Thursday news release from the university.

The 57,000-square-foot existing engineering building, built in 1959, will be stripped down to steel beams and completely renovated and 63,000 square feet will be added.

The project will be funded through the state of Michigan's capital outlay budget, bond financing and corporate and university support. UM Regent Ronald Weiser and Eileen Weiser are donating $1 million to the project.

Construction is expected to begin in the spring. It is being designed by the SmithGroupJJR. Construction has not yet been bid out.

The renovation and addition is largely a response to growing regional and national demand for engineers. UM-Dearborn's engineering program enrollment has increased 74 percent since 2010 and it plans to double the number of College of Engineering and Computer Science graduates by 2020.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/um%20engineering%20lab-01_i.jpg?itok=eIDiGKVZ

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171005/news/641331/um-dearborn-to-open-90-million-engineering-building-by-fall-2020

skyscraperpage17

Oct 8, 2017, 4:55 PM

Like Chicago, Detroit's also doing "fact-finding" visits to Amazon's HQ in Seattle.

In fact, Gilbert intends to have a discussion with Bezos directly:

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171006/blog016/641376/gilbert-executives-visit-seattle-twice-for-amazon-hq2-fact-finding

skyscraperpage17

Oct 8, 2017, 5:27 PM

Well, so much for that. Congrats Atlanta!

Snyder: No plans to increase tax incentive ante for Amazon HQ2

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171006/news/641431/snyder-no-plans-to-increase-tax-incentive-ante-for-amazon-hq2

LMich

Oct 8, 2017, 9:12 PM

The Free Press did a piece of photojournalism this morning on Iron Workers Local 25, who rasied the steel roof of Little Caesars Arena. Photos were taken by embedded writer Diane Weiss (http://www.freep.com/pages/interactives/little-caesars-arena/team-steel/).

http://media.freep.com/little-caesars-arena/images/team_steel_02.jpg

http://media.freep.com/little-caesars-arena/images/team_steel_04.jpg

http://media.freep.com/little-caesars-arena/images/team_steel_06.jpg

http://media.freep.com/little-caesars-arena/images/team_steel_09.jpg

The buildings trades in Metro Detroit are finally back in the money, these days.

Docta_Love

Oct 8, 2017, 9:14 PM

To be fair Snyder has said no increase in tax incentives but not that more funds won't be put towards sweeteners like the "marshall plan for talent" which would create a regional training network that would provide a talent pipeline. Or if say money would be put towards getting the RTA up and running instead of waiting for the 2018 elections for another try at the ballot. Well that last part is pure speculation but would be in line with what the governor has been talking about but i guess we'll just have to wait another 11 days to see what they've put together.

I found a interesting bit of information in an article written by George Will who is a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post comparing Mike Duggan to Fiorello La Guardia who is considered one of the best mayors in american history. It turns out that as of the summer DTE says electrical hook ups in the city are up and have been steadily rising since mid last year pointing towards a growing population, however as empty nesters replace families with school age children in some cases its not a sinch.

Mike Duggan Gets Knighted by This King of American Politics

By Alan Stamm
Deadline Detroit
October 7th, 2017

George Will, who lives just outside Washington, D.C., can't vote for Mike Duggan next month -- but gives him a re-election boost that is the stuff of candidates's dreams.

The influential politics writer compares Detroit's leader to Fiorello LaGuardia, a three-term New York City mayor (1934-45) who "is acclaimed as one of the greatest mayors in American history," as Wikipedia puts it. LaGuardia ranks No.1 in "The American Mayor," a historian's 1993 book.

"In Duggan, Detroit has found its Fiorello La Guardia — a short, stocky, cheerful, plain-spoken incarnation of his city," Will writes in his syndicated column, published Saturday in The Washington Post and distributed to roughly 470 other newspapers.

....

The columnist, who has authored 14 books about politics and baseball (separately) and won a 1977 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, lists Duggan's achievements:

-"Drastically reduced" emergency response times.
-"Fully maintained" parks.
-"65,000 LED streetlights replaced the 40 percent of the city’s streetlights that were broken when he took office in 2014."
-"Demolishing 12,000 abandoned structures since 2014."

"Such granular attention to the small stuff is having a huge payoff," he writes. "Residential utility hookups are increasing. For the first time in his 59 years, the city is expected to grow.
http://www.deadlinedetroit.com/articles/18503/mike_duggan_gets_knighted_by_this_king_of_american_political_journalism

Here's Duggan's keynote adress at the Mackinac Island policy conference which goes In-depth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrPAcQaYISg

Design firm, housewares store to open flagship location in Jefferson-Chalmers
POST opens October 11

BY ROBIN RUNYAN
Curbed Detroit
OCT 6, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xWBZOkHaD-1bWGtYKMqna6tHeVs=/0x0:1080x1080/920x613/filters:focal(454x454:626x626):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57036951/IMG_7677.0.jpg

A 1940 Post Office on Detroit’s east side will soon open as a flagship retail store for a local design firm. POST opens its doors October 11. Mutual Adoration, a Detroit-based design firm specializing in furniture and housewares made of reclaimed wood, plans to turn the location into a gathering spot for the community, with retail, classes, workshops, special events, and tours of the workspaces of some of Detroit’s creative companies.

The company, led by Clare Fox and Wayne Maki, moved its production facility into the building in April 2017. Jefferson East Inc. helped them find the space, and a Motor City Match award helped them open the doors to the 10,000-square-foot facility.

The shop will carry Mutual Adoration’s line of products, as well as a selection of gifts, jewelry, home goods, and American-made products from small, independent studios. They’ll also carry a variety of women-owned brands like Abigail Murray ceramics, feminist printmakers Marcy Davy and Vichcraft, and local small craft artisans like Cellar Door Soaps and JKM soy candles.

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/6/16438260/housewares-store-open-jefferson-chalmers

skyscraperpage17

Oct 9, 2017, 10:07 AM

Docta_Love

Oct 9, 2017, 3:53 PM

Dan Gilbert has apparently been talking with the current Amazon workers in downtown about the company and sent a fact finding trip to Seattle and a key number came up talent within a 5 hour drive is what their looking for - drawing talent from. I may properly post this crain's article later. Also mentioned is that the Canadian's will most likely be contributing to the incentives package as this is not just a Detroit bid but a Detroit - Windsor bid. As to whether there would be any money for transit its said over and over that is our weakest point its not likely that fact has been over looked my guess was purely theoretical but with 50,000 jobs on the line i could even see L brooks pony up for transit if Detroit was say one of the finalists its not like anyone expects all 8 million sq ft to be only in Detroit and Windsor.

But whatever the plan DG says the incentives package will be about helping amazon to increase its profits not just writing the biggest check.

DG: "Labor and talent is a big, big deal. Amazon has told us more than five times, 10 times, that they want to know about the university talent within a five hour drive of Detroit, so that gets us (the University of) Waterloo, which is one of the reasons we are so high on the Canadian thing. It's one of the, if not the, premier software technology schools in North America. I think it's the No. 1 place outside of Silicon Valley. That also gets us Carnegie Mellon, which is in Pittsburgh, Chicago universities, obviously East Lansing. Amazon comes to a region, they are looking more broad. No. 2, it's dynamic analysis, not a static analysis. What they make is just hard to fit into a spreadsheet."

Here's what was said of incentives in the crain's interview....

DG: Yes, they stated clearly that incentives will be a piece of it. I personally don't believe it will be the single largest reason. It will be a reason, one of the things they look at. We have something that we think is unique and different that counters incentives. We can't discuss it right now because we don't want to give it away to our competitors, but we think it's better than incentives. You'll see that soon enough here. What would make Amazon have more profits? That's what we are looking at. Incentives are a one-time thing. We are working on something. We are not done. There are a lot of interesting concepts. Not only is this process going to help us whether we win or not, but we are going to have action on things that are otherwise going to fester for awhile or may never happen.

RF: You get into an elevator with Bezos with 15 floors to make your case after all the work you've done. What is it?

DG: No. 1, you get a chance to come to a city that is a city that represents two countries. Those two countries have a vast and deep amount of talent and labor, from Waterloo, drawing from Chicago and the five-hour drive. No. 2, we have a path on the real estate to get you your 8 million-plus (square) feet that nobody has because of the concentration of ownership we have and the land that we have and the developments that can happen. Tons of optionality for you. Your million (square) feet that you need in 2019, we have it for you in beautiful, renovated, cool downtown buildings. No. 3, there's going to be some stuff on the training with the state and technology people and all that.

RF: You did mention incentives.

DG: We have something that I personally think will be better. There are all these things that are being juggled and talked about that aren't our decision.

RF: No. 3 has something to do with training?

DG: There will be something where I will be able to say, "You will have all the talent that you will need to grow this thing to the 50,000 people you want." Some pretty good things.

....

DG: People get hung up on incentives, and I get that. I just did some numbers. Let's say there's one city that has these large incentives and there's another city that's $40 per square foot cheaper in rent. Forty dollars per square foot times 8 million is $320 million per year, times 10 years, $3.2 billion. This is what I'm saying. You have to look at the whole thing, all the levers.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171008/news/641506/of-amazon-bezos-and-detroits-pitch-for-hq2

skyscraperpage17

Oct 9, 2017, 5:05 PM

animatedmartian

Oct 9, 2017, 7:51 PM

subterranean

Oct 9, 2017, 7:57 PM

I know rents and home prices have already risen to staggering levels in certain parts of Detroit, particularly the high-end condo market. But if by some crazy stretch this actually does happen, I know some people with some pretty prime spots that are going to become fabulously wealthy if they ever choose to sell. I have some friends and family in Seattle whose homes have basically doubled in value the last several years.

rlw777

Oct 10, 2017, 2:05 PM

Basically, Detroit's average rent is the cheapest of any large city which means Detroit doesn't necessarily need as large of incentives since the cheaper real estate is an incentive in its own right.

Higher rent cities like DC or Boston might have to offer bigger tax incentives to equal the financial savings that Amazon could get on Detroit's cheaper rent alone. Of course, there's pretty big reasons why rents are higher in those cities and the question is whether Detroit is good for its value or if Detroit's too cheap to be considered by Amazon because of the city's drawbacks. That's something only the Amazon execs could state directly.

It should be noted Class A office space in Seattle's CBD is currently averaging $40 per sq ft. Detroit is around $20. Boston and DC? $60 and $70. And of course, anywhere Amazon goes, rent goes up with it so that's a consideration as well. In that sense, Detroit has room to grow whereas DC might already be more than what Amazon is willing to pay. Except for when tax incentives come into play. But then how big of a package is DC willing to offer? The least amount DC would have to offer that affords Amazon the same savings as if they moved to Detroit would be at least $3.2 Billion dollars. Possibly the same or bigger than the Foxconn deal in Wisconsin. But then the question is whether Amazon considers DC good for it's value (+ any range of incentives or possibly even none) or whether the city is overpriced.

But then who knows, Amazon might be willing to pay up to $100 per square foot without incentives if they feel that a city just so meets their needs (which btw, only NYC has rents that high, specifically in Midtown Manhattan).

Exactly low rent and lots of open space to build in attractive areas means Detroit doesn't have to do much to be competitive on price. (see the chart below) Talent is exactly where they should be focusing. For tech companies especially one planning to hire 50,000 people a steady pipeline of good talent is the top priority. This is why IMO a lot of smaller cities that are putting in bids don't stand a chance. I would think that regions with a low cost of doing business and lots of so called 'Brain drain' are in a really good position for the bid if they can convince Amazon they can keep that talent in the region.

https://i.imgur.com/pRO2P7ql.png
from Business Insider (http://www.businessinsider.com/us-city-real-estate-price-chart-2014-3)

Docta_Love

Oct 10, 2017, 4:55 PM

Hmm i hadn't heard about any of this but i like that the Heidelberg is taking this opportunity to evolve.

Renovation begins on part of Heidelberg Project in Detroit

Crain's Detroit Business
By Associated Press
October 10, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Heidelberg%20Project_Numbers%20House_i.jpg?itok=ySe41Fsz

-Homes in the art installation were targeted by arson
-Numbers House is one of remaining original buildings
-Plans call for artist-in-residence program, new studio, gallery and event space

The renovated Numbers House will feature an artist-in-residence program; a new studio and gallery for emerging artists; and an education and event space for neighborhood events and youth programming.

The Heidelberg Project in Detroit has begun renovating one of the outdoor art installation's remaining original structures.

The work on the Numbers House marks "the beginning of a new era for the Heidelberg Project," Jenenne Whitfield, president and CEO of the Heidelberg Project, said in a statement Tuesday.

The renovated house will feature an artist-in-residence program; a new studio and gallery for emerging artists; and an education and event space for neighborhood events and youth programming.

The Heidelberg Project last year launched a $100,000 capital campaign called "Heidelberg 3.0" after homes decorated by artist Tyree Guyton were targeted by arson since 2013.

The six-month effort brought in nearly $110,000 to kick-start construction, according to a news release.

Laavu, a Detroit-based architectural design practice rooted in city-building, will serve as the design partner.

Guyton founded the Heidelberg Project in 1986 in response to urban decay. He announced in 2016 that he was planning to mostly take it down.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171010/news01/641681/renovation-begins-on-part-of-heidelberg-project-in-detroit

DTE's Lapeer solar park now powering 11,000 homes

By TYLER CLIFFORD
Crain's Detroit Business
October 09, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/DTE%20solar%20park%20Lapeer_i.jpg?itok=0K7DEwtx

-DTE now powers 450,000 homes from 1,000 megawatts of renewable energy
-DTE has invested $170 million in solar energy since 2008
-Detroit-based company wants to add 4,000 megawatts of renewable energy by 2050 to power 1.5 million homes

DTE Energy Co.'s 250-acre solar park in Lapeer is now operating and powering 11,000 homes, the Detroit-based company announced Monday.

DTE now powers 450,000 homes from 1,000 megawatts of renewable energy, with solar energy making up 7 percent of its renewable energy portfolio, it said in a news release.

The company has invested $170 million in solar energy since 2008. The goal is to power 2.2 million customers with reliable, affordable and cleaner energy, DTE Vice President of Business Planning and Development said in a statement.

"DTE plans to reduce carbon emissions by more than 80 percent by 2050 in a way that works for Michigan's economy, homeowners and businesses," the statement read. "We will achieve these reductions by incorporating substantially more renewable energy into our diverse energy mix while also transitioning our 24/7 power sources from coal to natural gas, continuing to operate our zero-emission Fermi 2 nuclear power plant, and improving options for customers to save energy and reduce bills."

Work on the 200,000-panel array began in May 2016. It is said to be one of the largest utility-owned solar parks east of the Mississippi River. The company also has O'Shea Solar Park on Detroit's west side, which is one of the Midwest's largest solar arrays in a metropolis, the news release said.

DTE's renewable energy portfolio now includes 13 wind parks and 31 solar arrays, which supplies more than 10 percent of electricity to customers, the release said.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171009/news/641631/dtes-lapeer-solar-park-now-powering-11000-homes

Docta_Love

Oct 10, 2017, 6:55 PM

Cool little project Detroit is sorely lacking in historic townhomes great to see this one fixed up.

Renovated Corktown townhomes near completion, open house planned

BY ROBIN RUNYAN
Curbed Detroit
OCT 9, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/YMFUWpCrCwbMmoIaH4nygBcVi5s=/0x0:2048x1420/920x613/filters:focal(861x547:1187x873):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57069635/DetroitGrooming_126.0.jpg

Back in February, we visited the renovation of 2000 Michigan Avenue, now home to Detroit Barbers. We could see that work was starting on the townhomes next door on Vermont. The renovation has now been completed by MFG Detroit, and an open house for the public is coming up.

On Saturday, October 21, from 1-5 p.m., the public is invited inside the two townhomes. The open house will also have furnishings by Samantha Kay Decor; art by Brooks Weatherfield, Anml Talk and NNII; and scents by Detroit Wick. DJ Joshua Crillley and Omar Rio will provide the music and Two James Distillery and MotorCity Wine will provide the drink. Yum Village Food truck will also be there.

The townhomes will be for up for rent in the mid $2,000 per month range. They’ll also be available for purchase if they have interested buyers.

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/9/16448728/corktown-townhomes-open-house

Coworking space, preschool co-op to open this month
Near Marygrove College

BY ROBIN RUNYAN
Curbed Detroit
OCT 9, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/d2F5gPM7Yek_Q-fGE2OLbyc1vqI=/0x0:1920x1080/920x613/filters:focal(807x387:1113x693):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57067151/dpc_rendering.0.jpg

Detroit has a variety of coworking options for those who need a work space in the city. A new option across from Marygrove College will cater to parents in need of both work space and built-in childcare.

The Detroit Parent Collective is currently finishing their build out and plans to open October 16, with a soft launch the week of October 9-13. The Collective will offer office space with internet access, in addition to on-site drop-in childcare. The Collective will also have programming around parental needs and interests including breastfeeding, wellness, nutrition, yoga, early literacy, and more. The space will be Detroit’s first permanent coworking space with built-in childcare.

The co-op preschool will have a Montessori-like curriculum led by a PhD master teacher with support of a parent. In each session, the master teacher will lead for two hours while a rotating roster of parent-members will support for 30 minutes.

The Collective has been supported by the Frank Family, Metro Solutions Inc., and The Skillman Foundation. To assist families interested in joining who need financial support, they have a crowd-sourcing campaign started.

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/9/16447760/coworking-preschool-co-op-open

subterranean

Oct 10, 2017, 7:41 PM

That is awesome about DTE. Really impressive if you ask me. Given that there is an estimated 4,560,055 households in Michigan as of 2016, DTE has 10% of the state covered by renewables, and that says nothing of the other utilities.

LMich

Oct 10, 2017, 9:06 PM

The legislature passed the Clean, Renewable, and Efficient Energy Act in 2008, which required utilities to generate 10% of their energy from renewables by 2015. That act was amended in December of last year to increase that to 15% by 2021. DTE and Consumers, the state's two largest utilities, had additional requirements. I know a lot of the other utilities are going in heavy on wind. Actually, most of DTE's renewable is actually wind. Wind farm construction in Mid/Central Michigan and the Thumb has been rising for years, now. If you're ever driving up US-127 north of Lansing, the Gratiot Wind Park is an amazing site up near Alma/St. Louis.

animatedmartian

Oct 10, 2017, 11:06 PM

It's not quite a massive a move as Amazon, but still a big deal.

Google to move from Birmingham to downtown Detroit
By KIRK PINHO. October 10, 2017. Crain's Detroit.

https://i.imgur.com/wng59uJ.jpg
....

Google, which has about 17,000 square feet in the building at 114 Willits St. at North Old Woodward Avenue, is looking for about 35,000 square feet, according to a statement. There are about 100 Google sales staff in the 126,000-square-foot building where it has been since 2007; the company first established a presence in Southeast Michigan in 2006, when it opened an office in Southfield. The office focuses on automotive advertising.

The company plans to expand the office's 100-employee workforce, Google spokesman Patrick Lenihan said, but he wouldn't say by how much. An exact site and move date have not been set.

....

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171010/news01/641706/google-to-move-from-birmingham-to-downtown-detroit

subterranean

Oct 10, 2017, 11:45 PM

If you're ever driving up US-127 north of Lansing, the Gratiot Wind Park is an amazing site up near Alma/St. Louis.

My folks live around that area. It's a sight to behold.

mind field

Oct 11, 2017, 1:14 AM

Google moving downtown is a huge win for Detroit. It'd be great if the Ann Arbor office joined the Birmingham one, but I don't think that's likely. It's almost mind boggling to think of all the companies that have relocated to downtown Detroit over the last decade or so. It'll be exciting to see what office tenants the new Monroe block development can attract.

The North One

Oct 11, 2017, 1:35 AM

This source says they're doubling their office space.

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/10/the-associated-press-google-moving-from-suburbs-to-reviving-downtown-detroit.html

The company said Tuesday that it will soon move to Detroit's tech-aspiring downtown area and double its space from the 17,000 square feet it occupies in Birmingham.

LMich

Oct 12, 2017, 3:03 PM

Not really new news, but a reiteration that the Joe site will be highrises.

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/f3ee98f364639455056b93836ab5825493ab81b2/c=132-0-5002-3662&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/2017/10/11/DetroitNews/B99577422Z.1_20171011211917_000_G5U1MJ0LV.1-0.jpg
Daniel Mears | Detroit News

Vision for Joe Louis site includes high-rises, retail (http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2017/10/12/future-joe-louis-arena/106545242/)

By Nicquel Terry | The Detroit News

October 12, 2017

Detroit — High-rise apartments with views of Windsor’s skyline. Restaurants overlooking the Detroit River. A promenade that connects new development with the western riverfront.

It’s all part of a vision mapped out by city stakeholders for the nearly vacant Joe Louis Arena that is expected to be demolished soon.

The arena closed this year when the Detroit Red Wings moved to their new home at Little Caesars Arena.

By most accounts, the 5-acre property is prime real estate for new development that connects the area to downtown and the riverfront.

The only other news was that demolition was to start on the Joe last month, but Olympia Entertainment has its headquarters here and extended the lease and expect to move out nex month. Financial Guaranty Insurance Co., a major creditor of the city, will get the site once demolition is completed, which was something agreed to during the bankruptcy.

Anyway, one thing we do know from the agreement is that while these will be highrises, developers can not build over 30 stories at the site, which I imagine is to protect some river views since the site is right on the river.

subterranean

Oct 12, 2017, 3:56 PM

I'm cool with a 30 story cap. I'm sure there will only be as many as 2 on a 5 acre site.

Docta_Love

Oct 12, 2017, 4:06 PM

^Now that the problem of the riverwalk gap at the riverfront towers is going to be fixed with the pier style promenade bypassing the towers i hope to see something that isn't just geared to make money for the former bondholders. With how successful the riverwalk has been it would be a shame to have a gated condo highrise(s). It makes me a little nervous hearing "deadzone" so many times in the article, not easy to access yea but deadzone not quite.

Historic Detroit Club eyes January reopening after renovation

By KURT NAGL
Crain's Detroit Business
October 11, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/DetroitClub%20exterior-main_i.jpg?itok=8P-a_w4U

The Detroit Club in downtown Detroit is poised for a comeback three years after a flood destroyed its interior.

The historic 40,000-square-foot building at 712 Cass Ave. at Fort Street is about 95 percent of the way through a multimillion-dollar overhaul by its owners, husband and wife Emre and Lynn Uralli.

The four-story club will be semi-private, with each floor and a basement fully renovated, said Regina Peter, director of sales and marketing for the Detroit Club. The club hopes to open in time for the North American International Auto Show at nearby Cobo Center in January.

"We really wanted to bring elements to the city that are missing," she said. "It was very important to the owner to allow Detroiters to experience the building."

The exact investment in the project was not disclosed. Uralli's Citi Investment Group Corp. is the general contractor and Lynn Uralli took the lead on the building's design.

The first floor of the building will have a 64-seat restaurant open to the public and a separate member's lounge. The second floor will have a ballroom accommodating 120 guests, while the third floor will house a 150-person dining room.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171011/news/641821/historic-detroit-club-eyes-january-reopening-after-renovation

LMich

Oct 12, 2017, 4:31 PM

I'm cool with a 30 story cap. I'm sure there will only be as many as 2 on a 5 acre site.

I'm fine with it two. In fact, the riverfront should have always had a height limit. Aesthetically, you kind of want a city that "steps up" from the river like this rather than creating a visual wall. I've always said they need to save the taller stuff for north of Jefferson, at least along East Jefferson.

Detroit

Oct 12, 2017, 5:09 PM

Not really new news, but a reiteration that the Joe site will be highrises.

The only other news was that demolition was to start on the Joe last month, but Olympia Entertainment has its headquarters here and extended the lease and expect to move out nex month. Financial Guaranty Insurance Co., a major creditor of the city, will get the site once demolition is completed, which was something agreed to during the bankruptcy.

Anyway, one thing we do know from the agreement is that while these will be highrises, developers can not build over 30 stories at the site, which I imagine is to protect some river views since the site is right on the river.

Ideally, I would like to see a world class aquarium at this site. Something like the Shedd, but uniquely Detroit.

Docta_Love

Oct 12, 2017, 5:52 PM

I'm fine with it two. In fact, the riverfront should have always had a height limit. Aesthetically, you kind of want a city that "steps up" from the river like this rather than creating a visual wall. I've always said they need to save the taller stuff for north of Jefferson, at least along East Jefferson.

Aesthetically i agree with the 30 floor cap matching the riverfront towers in height is right for that spot. Plus the connection with the core isn't great like the Ren Cen during its early days it took long enough to get rid of those big cooling berms that made it look like a fortress not to mention it's relative isolation from the rest of the downtown core. Thankfully though Gm finally opened it up with the new Jefferson entrance and the riverwalk promenade, can't count on a remodel ever time a developer makes a mistake tho. ;)

Docta_Love

Oct 13, 2017, 3:48 PM

Google eye's LCA office space. .

Google close to deal for new building near Little Caesars Arena

By KIRK PINHO
Crain's Detroit Business
October 13, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/LCA_exterior_Oct%202017-main_i.jpg?itok=cFz9j_N1

Internet giant Google is nearing a deal for at least 35,000 square feet of new office space next to Little Caesars Arena in downtown Detroit.

According to CoStar Group Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based real estate information service, Google is moving from Birmingham to 2645 Woodward Ave., which is the arena's address.

However, there is a recently completed building on Henry Street where the company is expected to go, a source familiar with the deal confirmed to Crain's on Friday.

That building is four floors with 16,760 square feet of ground-level restaurant and retail space and 46,970 square feet of office space above, according to CoStar.

If the deal comes to fruition, it would be one of the biggest wins so far for the Ilitch family in its quest to build out the 50-block District Detroit project that's anchored by the new arena for the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Pistons.

While some new retail tenants, such as restaurants in and around the new arena, have been announced, Google would be the first large user not affiliated with the Ilitches to take space in the district.

Wayne State University is building the new Mike Ilitch School of Business next to the arena following a $40 million donation from the Ilitch family patriarch in October 2015. Ilitch died in February. The Ilitch-owned Little Caesars Enterprises Inc. pizza chain is also building its new $150 million Global Resource Center south of the arena.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171013/news/642006/google-close-to-deal-for-new-building-near-little-caesars-arena

Biggest sale of the year so far.

The Bishop’s Mansion, Detroit’s largest residence, sells for $2.7M

BY ROBIN RUNYAN
Curbed Detroit
OCT 12, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-efNFN6D1Ev6zK6A6QrJVvDzgw0=/0x0:2049x1537/920x613/filters:focal(936x491:1262x817):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57125697/image1_1_.0.jpeg

The biggest sale of the year just showed up on the radar. The Bishop’s Mansion in Palmer Woods, Detroit’s largest residence, was not listed on the MLS and just sold to a California investor for $2.7 million fully furnished, according to selling agent Tony Rodriguez of Re/Max Suburban in Sterling Heights.

The Bishop Gallagher House is 35,000 square feet and was built in 1924-25 for Bishop Michael J. Gallagher. The house was financed by the Fisher brothers and designed by Maginnis and Walsh. The archdiocese sold the house in 1989 and Detroit Piston John Salley lived in the home for a while. Most recently, Great Faith Ministries owned the home.

This is the largest residential sale of the year in Detroit. A Book Cadillac penthouse had the top spot at $1,795,000, followed by the Motown Mansion at $1,650,000, and the Fisher Mansion at $1,250,000.

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/12/16466570/bishops-mansion-detroit-sold

The North One

Oct 13, 2017, 3:52 PM

I heard the rumor a couple days ago, I guess it's true.

I thought Olympia was putting their offices in there though.

Docta_Love

Oct 13, 2017, 4:30 PM

Sister Pie aims to buy its building, expand business in Detroit's West Village

By TYLER CLIFFORD
Crain's Detroit Business
October 13, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/Sister%20Pie_store-main_i.jpg?itok=Vb4XZ5Ip

-Sister Pie in talks to buy its West Village building
-Owner is asking $420,000 for the property and two buildings
-Sister Pie opened in 2015 and would expand into new space

Sister Pie LLC is cooking up a deal to buy the West Village building that has been its home for two years and expand the bakery.

Lisa Ludwinski, founder and owner of the Detroit-based bakeshop, said she is in talks with property owner Bill Haska Jr. and his broker to purchase the parcel of land and the two buildings on it totaling 2,070 square feet on Parker Street at Kercheval Avenue on Detroit's east side.

Haska purchased the buildings, built in 1925, nearly 30 years ago. It was an appliance shop at the time, said his broker, Gordon Hawkins of Detroit-based Hawkins Realty Group LLC. Haska owns several properties across the city and is "slowly but surely selling off a lot of his stuff," Hawkins said.

Haska is asking for $420,000 for the two buildings on a land contract with $200,000 down over a five-year period. Everything else is negotiable, Hawkins said.

"We are giving Lisa time to put an offer in. We are waiting on her," he said. "There are two buildings on one parcel. Lisa is in the front and the other commercial space is divided into two small spaces. It can be used as one space or divided into two 450-square-foot spaces."

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171013/news/641996/sister-pie-aims-to-buy-its-building-expand-business-in-detroits-west

LMich

Oct 13, 2017, 6:59 PM

However, there is a recently completed building on Henry Street where the company is expected to go

And what building is this on Henry that's not the arena? I'm confused. There is no other new construction office space in District Detroit aside from the arena block, itself. That is, unless they are talking about the attached buildings as not being part of the arena, which is ridiculous.

Ground breaking on a project announced months ago.

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/77976031b266bdbfc9c0cd79db9622a75239b625/c=46-0-755-533&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/2015/05/12/DetroitFreePress/DetroitFreePress/635670333004406073-sakthi-051115-kd10.jpg
Kirthmon Dozier | Detroit Free Press

Indian auto supplier's $7 million Detroit expansion expected to add 200 jobs (http://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/2017/10/13/sakthi-automotive-adding-200-jobs-detroit/761548001/)

By Eric D. Lawrence | Detroit Free Press

October 13, 2017

ndian auto supplier Sakthi Automotive broke ground today 10/13 in Southwest Detroit on what is planned as a $7 million expansion that will add 200 jobs.

The company is building a 60,000-square-foot facility to be completed in the middle of next year south of its local headquarters at 6401 W. Fort St. A news release from the City of Detroit said Sakthi needs the new standalone facility for its expanding business supplying undercarriage steering and other components to U.S. and European automakers.

http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/e934ea180a0a9e11bd0f374fd90b92d94ae61d73/c=221-955-2292-2512&r=x383&c=540x380/local/-/media/2015/04/28/DetroitFreePress/DetroitFreePress/635658263451374520-DFP-walsh-sakthi-expansion-MAP-PRESTO.jpg

http://www.dailydetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/southwestern-high-school-sakthi-rendering.jpg

LMich

Oct 13, 2017, 8:08 PM

The renovation of the Professional Plaza - now The Plaza - into upscale apartments is now complete.

http://image.mlive.com/home/mlive-media/width960/img/detroit/photo/2017/10/13/-824535447672735b.JPG

Upscale apartments offer Detroit skyline views after $22 million renovation (http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2017/10/22m_renovations_for_high-rise.html)

By Dana Afana | MLive.com

October 13, 2017

DETROIT -- The former Hammer and Nail high-rise in Midtown has undergone a $22-million renovation to transform into an upscale apartment complex known as The Plaza, which is now ready to be occupied, developers announced Friday.

The 12-story building at 3800 Woodward Ave. has 72 apartments and about 2,000 square feet of retail.

http://image.mlive.com/home/mlive-media/width960/img/detroit/photo/2017/10/13/-683bcd768108a351.JPG

A quarter of the units are already occupied. A big thing for this project? No free, dedicated parking. BTW, they saved the old "hammer-and-nail" neon sign that used to be at the top of the building. It's now in the lobby:

http://image.mlive.com/home/mlive-media/width960/img/detroit/photo/2017/10/13/-b6c6a06d7ec32e03.JPG
Tanya Moutzalias

LMich

Oct 13, 2017, 10:28 PM

As usual, The Detroit News has a better description of where Google is likely to end up. It's the lot between Henry and the freeway, which I thought was supposed to be a hotel.

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/7c6462ea57b3c7ddb67993864011fbf2e664714b/c=330-0-5685-4016&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/2017/10/13/DetroitNews/B99586493Z.1_20171013180131_000_GVC1MMSCF.1-0.jpg
David Gulranick | The Detroit News

Google weighs Little Caesars Arena area for new offices (http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2017/10/13/google-little-caesars-arena-detroit-office/106601654/)

By Louis Aguilar | The Detroit News

October 13, 2017

ech giant Google Inc. is considering a new building next to Little Caesars Arena for the offices it is moving from suburban Birmingham, according to sources familiar with the talks.

The deal isn’t finalized, but The News has learned Google is seeking between 30,000 to 40,000 square feet of space in a building planned for the southwestern edge of the sports/entertainment venue

The new building would be bordered by Henry Street and the Fisher Freeway Service Drive. It would not be part of the indoor pedestrian concourse, known as the Via, that links the arena with two buildings with restaurants and stores.

The context of the move:

The potential Google move is the latest among tech giants who are moving or setting up offices in downtown Detroit.

Microsoft Corp. opened an office in the One Campus Martius building, moving a regional technology center from Southfield where it had been located for 30 years, officials confirmed Friday.

Amazon expanded its offices at 150 W. Jefferson into a corporate office and create a local technology hub.

I wonder if they'll be developing a single tenant office building or something more? I also wonder if they still include the hotel in this? This could be a fairly substantial building if it's mixed use.

http://33eb182eb9355b42152c-f1295cd01678677e8a4b5269829bbe04.r52.cf1.rackcdn.com/Parking_Thumb.jpg

Docta_Love

Oct 15, 2017, 6:00 PM

There is a real hotel boom going on in the city and metro area i've seen 4 new hotels built within a few miles of my place here in Farmington Hills just in the past few years with a 5th about to break ground. That hotel tower on telegraph in Southfield which was a perennial problem child has new ownership and was renovated and the (northland convention center hotel?) looks like it will follow suit.

I will say though that until recently i never considered Lake Huron when i was planning a trip up north or to the beach but now i don't understand why the "bluewater coast" isn't Metro Detroit's go to "shore" and why area's like Port Austin which has big dunes to the SW nice beaches and a mini pictured rock's to the NE and only 2-2 1/2 hrs north on van dyke isn't well known at all. There are also several small cutsie tourist harbor towns with lighthouses like Lexington along the coast north of Port Huron as well that i would imagine could be popular close in alternatives for a weekend getaway.

Well after going to the grand sable dunes area of pictured rocks national lakeshore this summer i'm glad so much of the northern part of the state is so remote, i can imagine that grand sable banks are what the sleeping bear dunes were like in the pre interstate highway day's.

As economy improves, so does Michigan tourism

By LINDSAY VANHULLE
Crain's Detroit Business
October 15, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/main_image/7970976/PureMichigan-Summer-main_i.png?itok=dmbl5_pa

....

From state park campsite reservations to national park visits, from Mackinac Bridge crossings to hotel stays, tourists are driving a solid Michigan summer for the tourism industry, data show.

People in the industry, including visitors' bureau directors and hotel operators, are optimistic the pace will continue as visitors flock to see Michigan's fall colors.

Travel in Michigan, in general, has been rising steadily since the bottom of the recession in 2008 and 2009, leaders of local, regional and state agencies say. The economy now is in its eighth year of expansion.

State tourism officials also point to evidence that the state's Pure Michigan tourism campaign is leading to more brand awareness and more visits to the state. But the data they rely on are estimates based on calculations that the state won't make publicly available.

....

"I don't think there's ever a time when you can say one particular thing does the trick," said Michael O'Callaghan, executive vice president and chief operating officer for the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau. "You can have a great advertising campaign for a candy bar and people will buy it once, and if the candy bar stinks, they're not coming back. We've got a pretty good-tasting candy bar."

Detroit's post-bankruptcy recovery has spurred new development and interest in the city, especially downtown, O'Callaghan said. He added that he has seen more foot traffic in the city center, especially on weekends.

In addition, changing tourism trends look as though they will have a positive effect on the statewide travel industry, as millennials increasingly look to spend money on experiences, rather than possessions, said Dave Lorenz, vice president of Travel Michigan, the state's tourism division.

Gov. Rick Snyder has promoted Michigan as a tourism destination on his overseas trade trips, most notably in China; the state saw some softness in international visitors in 2016, Lorenz said, which he said could be attributed to a stronger U.S. dollar and uncertainty surrounding the presidential election.

....

-Hotel occupancy in Grand Rapids was close to 69 percent through August, said Doug Small, president and CEO of Experience Grand Rapids. That's up from a low of 48 percent in 2008, he said. Likewise, hotel average daily rates are running at about $117 through August, Small said, up $3 from the same time last year.

-In Traverse City, hotel visits were trending upward by about 3 percent from May through September year over year at three hotels owned by Alex Mowczan's Summerside Properties LLC. July was slightly down, though the weather was cooler and wetter this year, he said.

-Hotel occupancy is 68.1 percent through August in metro Detroit, compared to 67.3 percent a year ago, said O'Callaghan, of the metro Detroit visitors' bureau. Average daily rates are now at close to $103 through August, up from nearly $99 last year. Occupancy crashed to nearly 47 percent during the worst of the recession, he said.

-Meetings and convention business is growing in Grand Rapids, but leisure travel has seen "tremendous growth" in part due to the region's craft beer scene and the city's arts and culture, Small said.

-Total lodging reservations at state park campsites were up close to 14 percent in July from the same month in 2016 — 997,381 compared to 875,919, according to data from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. "This is probably as good as it's been, I would say, in 10 years," said Ron Olson, the DNR's chief of parks and recreation.

-Mackinac Bridge crossings have increased every month of the year through July, at roughly 2.2 million for the first seven months of 2017, based on data from the Mackinac Bridge Authority.

-Visits to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Munising were up about 6 percent year over year for January and February, acting park Superintendent Nancy Finley said. Summer was more mixed — down 5 percent in June, up 3 percent in July. Weather, she said, is a big determining factor in whether people travel: "It's been a little colder this year," she said. "We're having a warmer fall."

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171015/news/642136/as-economy-improves-so-does-michigan-tourism

Docta_Love

Oct 15, 2017, 7:30 PM

Here's a update well from over a week ago thanks to lowell from detroityes of the progress at the Statler site i know a lot of people aren't hyped on the design including me but i'm hoping at least that the materials will look better irl. Still though i'm happy to see a big hole in GCP get filled in this debate kind of reminds me of what happened with Kennedy square except it was about the stature of the building not the design either way i'm just glad to see development moving toward the west side of GCP.

https://www.detroityes.com/mb/attachment.php?attachmentid=34308&d=1507054699

animatedmartian

Oct 15, 2017, 10:27 PM

I will say though that until recently i never considered Lake Huron when i was planning a trip up north or to the beach but now i don't understand why the "bluewater coast" isn't Metro Detroit's go to "shore" and why area's like Port Austin which has big dunes to the SW nice beaches and a mini pictured rock's to the NE and only 2-2 1/2 hrs north on van dyke isn't well known at all. There are also several small cutsie tourist harbor towns with lighthouses like Lexington along the coast north of Port Huron as well that i would imagine could be popular close in alternatives for a weekend getaway.

Probably just the difference in quantity of scenic areas compared to other parts of the state.

Since the Thumb Region is mostly flat, there's a ton of farming which makes the journey uninteresting and boring. Only the few miles (or less) off of Lake Huron are anything interesting. Up north, you get miles and miles of scenery plus the varied terrain and even some inland lakes. It's easier to find your own little hideaway in nooks and crannies so to speak. The irony is that the remoteness up north makes it more attractive.

Somewhat related, IIRC, there's was a book on Metro Detroit's expected growth during the 1960s or 70s where urban planners thought the city would sprawl towards Port Huron within the next 100 years, but instead most people headed northwest into Oakland County. They were fairly optimistic Port Huron would become a new major port because of the connection to Canada and it's location between Lake Huron and Lake St. Clair. They also expected the region to have 15 million residents by now so... yea. Maybe if Port Huron (and by extension, Detroit) managed to keep up that sort of growth, Lake Huron would become dotted with resorts and attractions but since it's just not as attractive as up north by itself, it's just stayed under the radar.

Docta_Love

Oct 15, 2017, 11:12 PM

Probably just the difference in quantity of scenic areas compared to other parts of the state.

Since the Thumb Region is mostly flat, there's a ton of farming which makes the journey uninteresting and boring. Only the few miles (or less) off of Lake Huron are anything interesting. Up north, you get miles and miles of scenery plus the varied terrain and even some inland lakes. It's easier to find your own little hideaway in nooks and crannies so to speak. The irony is that the remoteness up north makes it more attractive.

Somewhat related, IIRC, there's was a book on Metro Detroit's expected growth during the 1960s or 70s where urban planners thought the city would sprawl towards Port Huron within the next 100 years, but instead most people headed northwest into Oakland County. They were fairly optimistic Port Huron would become a new major port because of the connection to Canada and it's location between Lake Huron and Lake St. Clair. They also expected the region to have 15 million residents by now so... yea. Maybe if Port Huron (and by extension, Detroit) managed to keep up that sort of growth, Lake Huron would become dotted with resorts and attractions but since it's just not as attractive as up north by itself, it's just stayed under the radar.

I guess i should have been a little more clear about what i was getting, Lake Huron's Michigan coast tends to have rocky beaches in the first place and while id say the thumb has handsome farmland its a boring drive. But the very tip of the thumb has "up north" qualities turnip rock can't be comapared to pictured rocks but is very out of place in SE MI. For the same reason most of Lake Huron tends to have rocky beaches (prevailing winds piling sand on eastern shores) the west side of the tip of the thumb has large dunes at port crescent state park.

Lake Huron's coast even up north has always lagged behind lake Michigan as has been said for a number. As for development in St. Clair county its definitely out of the way but it would seem to me places like Lexington for example aren't given any thought by most. I like to pride myself as having traveled to the our best parks, beaches and wilderness areas but i was taken a aback by the thumb of all places having such a nice area.

Turnip Rock

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ymouCyGYoF4/UPbtDIPWI7I/AAAAAAAABCE/fzS56vPofgk/s1600/Turnip+Rock%252C+Michigan+6.jpg

Port Crescent State Park Beach (at the mouth of Saginaw Bay technically, the water is a tends to be 5 degrees or more warmer than the rest of southern Lake Huron 80 degrees or warmer in mid summer in this area has become common nowadays. Also its down wind position from Saginaw Bay the prevailing westerly winds allowed large dunes to form as well not pictured)

http://cdn.onlyinyourstate.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/beach.jpg

Edit; we may just be spoiled having more coastline than any other state in the lower 48, but with all the lakes in oakland county (1000) and not to mention livingston county with just these areas there really aren't a lack of options even closer in, pinckney state park area for example or kensington metropark are really "up north" vacation areas that have started to become exurban ... fortunately not to the degree of the former resort towns in oakland like walled lake where the water quality was ruined.

LMich

Oct 16, 2017, 5:15 AM

Don't want to get too far off topic, but Lake Huron was never going to be what Lake Michigan was simply because of the weather. The heaviest winds come in from the west, which basically created sandy beaches and dunelands along the entire eastern coast of Lake Michigan. It's why it's far more tourism developed than the west coast of the lake. That, and the sun sets on the eastern shores of the lakes.

That's not to say that you probably couldn't get more tourism up north of Detroit; and it's far more beautiful than people give it credit for. But no one should be surprised or expect it to rival Lake Michigan's tourism industry.

north 42

Oct 16, 2017, 3:16 PM

The eastern shore of Lake Huron in Ontario is very sandy and is very popular. It has some very busy beach towns along its shores, especially south of the Bruce Peninsula. Grand Bend and Sauble Beach are the two biggest beach towns.

Docta_Love

Oct 17, 2017, 9:38 PM

^That's what i heard too that the Sarnia side has a much nicer coast however i always see a lot of Ontario plates at the state park north of Port Huron something about the provincial park near Sarnia being booze free. ;)

Fitzgerald neighborhood work starts with new park, community center

BY ROBIN RUNYAN
Curbed Detroit
OCT 17, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/e2FxChXT1bmb6a56kDMUzosjmqw=/1000x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/9481557/Screenshot_2017_10_17_Twitter.png

The official groundbreaking started today in the Livernois-McNichols area for the Fitzgerald neighborhood revitalization, which is a multi-faceted approach to improve the neighborhood. The first two projects—Ella Fitzgerald Park and a “HomeBase” community center—broke ground today.

The neighborhood revitalization is a collaboration between multiple partners, including the City of Detroit, the Reimagining the Civic Commons program, the Live6 Alliance, developers FitzForward, and more.

The Ella Fitzgerald Park will have a multipurpose sports field and basketball court, as well as play equipment, green space, and a greenway running through the park. The park will also have two murals by local artist Hubert Massey. It will add a vibrant, attractive gathering place to the surrounding community.

HomeBase, a new community center on McNichols Avenue, will be home to the Live6 Alliance, along with the Detroit Collaborative Design Center—a nonprofit architecture and urban design firm at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture, and shared space for various city of Detroit staff and community groups.

“You can’t underestimate what the establishment of HomeBase will do to accelerate the collaboration between the various organizations who are working toward revitalizing this area,” says Lauren Hood, Live6 Alliance co-director. “And a well-trafficked office can only help spur more development in the immediate vicinity. This means there’ll be one less abandoned building on this street. We’ll be a good neighbor to the about-to-open coffee shop next door, the restaurant in the works across the street and the other active buildings in the vicinity. Activity attracts more activity for everyone.

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MSCaDU4tsZ7Hko77GUhXWQ8GZko=/0x0:1248x818/920x613/filters:focal(525x310:723x508):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57188555/Screenshot_2017_10_17_Twitter_1_.0.png

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/17/16489482/fitzgerald-neighborhood-redevelopment

LMich

Oct 18, 2017, 2:15 AM

More from the neighborhood revitalization to jog some memories:

http://www.fitzgerald-detroit.com/wp-content/uploads/EX_E.png

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/7MD4hDlxC_xYD4OcFugrNLwPtks=/0x0:1248x818/920x613/filters:focal(525x310:723x508)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57188555/Screenshot_2017_10_17_Twitter_1_.0.png

https://d2nyfqh3g1stw3.cloudfront.net/photos/733_25702.jpg

https://nextcity.org/images/made/Detroit_FitzgeralRendering_920_498_80.jpg

A smaller development, but a really interesting one is The Kelemen fourplex on Elliot in between John R and Brush in Brush Park. It includes three rowhomes and an upper-level penthouse. Each unit includes 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, rear decks, and backyard parking.

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22365273_149295205678493_1303656681837576561_n.jpg?oh=4d5f77ac200fa21d11c445c178897c17&oe=5A88B2A0
The Kelemen Residences of Brush Park (https://www.facebook.com/pg/thekelemenbrushpark/photos/?ref=page_internal)

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/19113725_113348332606514_6586359173612694116_n.jpg?oh=5dc43ef0f6b85cc2137fcb6fc3013c0b&oe=5A3B3D95
The Kelemen Residences of Brush Park (https://www.facebook.com/pg/thekelemenbrushpark/photos/?ref=page_internal)

https://ssl.cdn-redfin.com/photo/144/mbpaddedwide/003/genMid.217032003_1.jpg

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/593a8f9a86e6c0eb08d7c0fb/593a9042db29d6ec6097f685/59442036bf629a93abbf04e3/1497636944177/Screen+Shot+2017-06-08+at+9.53.13+AM.png?format=1000w

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/593a8f9a86e6c0eb08d7c0fb/593a9042db29d6ec6097f685/5944205346c3c4485ad75140/1497636952117/Screen+Shot+2017-06-15+at+11.20.41+AM.jpg?format=1000w

skyscraperpage17

Oct 18, 2017, 2:58 PM

Flint is also going to join in with Detroit's Amazon HQ2 bid.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171017/news/642276/flint-joins-detroits-amazon-hq2-bid-grand-rapids-to-submit-its-own

animatedmartian

Oct 18, 2017, 3:50 PM

Just noticed off in the distance of the LCA cam the Henry Ford Hospital project. Looks like it's already up about 3 or 4 floors.

https://i.imgur.com/YCe6uTV.png
http://www.districtdetroit.com/live-web-cam/

Docta_Love

Oct 18, 2017, 4:46 PM

A smaller development, but a really interesting one is The Kelemen fourplex on Elliot in between John R and Brush in Brush Park. It includes three rowhomes and an upper-level penthouse. Each unit includes 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, rear decks, and backyard parking.

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/593a8f9a86e6c0eb08d7c0fb/593a9042db29d6ec6097f685/5944205346c3c4485ad75140/1497636952117/Screen+Shot+2017-06-15+at+11.20.41+AM.jpg?format=1000w

Sweet

MoGo reaches bike ridership goal more than 6 months early

By ANNALISE FRANK
Crain's Detroit Business
October 17, 2017

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/sites/default/files/styles/core_colorbox/public/MoGo%20launch_bikes_Chad_i_i.jpg?itok=JsvmwPoQ

The MoGo bike-share system published figures on ridership since its May 23 launch:

-An average of 705 trips per day
-2,100 rides on peak ridership day, its free ride day Oct. 1
-Average ride length of 22 minutes
-Riders have biked a total of 76,000 miles
-About 2,000 monthly and annual passes sold

Detroit's MoGo bike share service reached its 100,000-ride goal more than six months early, the nonprofit announced Tuesday.

Mogo recorded 100,000 rides in the five months since its May 23 launch — a number it expected to reach after a full year of operations, MoGo founder and Executive Director Lisa Nuszkowski said.

MoGo has 430 bikes docked at 43 stations across 10 neighborhoods of the city.

Nuszkowski said the bicycles have held up as expected, with "minor maintenance" required. MoGo chose Quebec, Canada-based PBSC Urban Solutions to build the $1,200 bikes specifically for its products' durability, she said.

Stealing "hasn't been much of an issue," she added. There have been a "few instances" in which bicycles haven't been returned at all, but MoGo's responses to missing bicycles and reasons for them to go missing vary. Numbers on missing bikes weren't immediately available.

Often when a bike is "missing" in the system, it's because it hasn't been docked properly, or the rider doesn't realize there is a half-hour time limit. A major challenge has been educating the public about how to use a bike share — a relatively new concept that's more about short-term use than normal bicycle rentals are, Nuszkowski said.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171017/news/642301/mogo-reaches-bike-ridership-goal-more-than-6-months-early

detroit_alive

Oct 18, 2017, 6:23 PM

Just noticed off in the distance of the LCA cam the Henry Ford Hospital project. Looks like it's already up about 3 or 4 floors.

I just drove by the Henry Ford project and they are still doing site work, nothing above ground. I think what you are seeing in the photos are the new dorms going up on 3rd in front of the Wayne State parking garage.

Detroit

Oct 18, 2017, 8:05 PM

animatedmartian

Oct 18, 2017, 11:08 PM

I just drove by the Henry Ford project and they are still doing site work, nothing above ground. I think what you are seeing in the photos are the new dorms going up on 3rd in front of the Wayne State parking garage.

You're probably right. I forgot how big those dorms are going to be. The tallest building will be 11 floors so it'll be pretty noticeable from the webcam view.

LMich

Oct 19, 2017, 12:25 AM

Which dorms are we talking about, again?

animatedmartian

Oct 19, 2017, 1:04 AM

Anthony Wayne Drive Apartments. Broke ground back in April. Meant to replace the Deroy apartment building across the street as that tower will be demolished when the new dorms are complete.

WxFsNi9qet0

Oh, and just came across the construction cam for these dorms.

https://app.oxblue.com/open/gilbane/awdwaynestate

https://i.imgur.com/JNJqQExh.jpg

subterranean

Oct 19, 2017, 4:38 PM

Wow, that is going to be great fro WSU.

Sidebar - I just noticed that Skyscraper City forums are compatible with Tapatalk - and it's awesome, just not updated as much as here. Why is it that people don't use that forum as much?

Docta_Love

Oct 19, 2017, 6:35 PM

^^Ahh I almost forgot about that one. I can't say i'd shed any tears for the old student housing tower (brown building to the right of new dorms in LCA cam, i believe) but it would be cool if before tearing it down Wayne State would shop the idea of some kind of conversion around considering the 98% residential occupancy rate in midtown.

Wayne State fundraising for activated park at Woodward and Warren

BY ROBIN RUNYAN
Curbed Detroit
OCT 18, 2017

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/jf7X0VLhUysq7WtsGp0isszCrKY=/0x0:4500x1925/920x613/filters:focal(1890x603:2610x1323):format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/57202343/WSU_rendering.0.jpeg

How can Wayne State University (WSU) best use a plot of land that could create a stronger link between the public and the university? A new crowdfunding campaign would activate the large green space at the corner of Woodward and Warren. If WSU can raise $25,000 by November 17, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation will match it with a $25,000 Public Spaces, Community Places grant.

The campaign has already raised nearly $11,000 with contributions from the Michigan Department of Transportation, Rainbow Child Care Center, and the Detroit Public Library Foundation.

The initiative aims at creating more of a gateway to Wayne State at this high-traffic corner. Funding would go toward adding seating, shading, landscaping, and lawn games. It will also be home to a satellite kiosk for Detroit Experience Factory and WSU Placemaking. This park isn’t meant to be a permanent fixture; according to the campaign, “Our prototype park will help us understand how students, employees, residents, and visitors use this space before deciding on a long-term use.”

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/K0jgGcJwuBD-wuM_99RAzGSFWMk=/1000x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/9487739/WSU_park.jpg

https://detroit.curbed.com/2017/10/18/16497226/wayne-state-park-woodward-warren

subterranean

Oct 20, 2017, 1:13 AM

DO4J_PC1b5M

animatedmartian

Oct 20, 2017, 1:31 AM

The North One

Oct 20, 2017, 1:39 AM

It's definitely good promotion in general, regardless of Amazon.

LMich

Oct 20, 2017, 3:48 AM

Why do I get the sense that that video isn't necessarily aimed at Amazon but basically any major company not located in Detroit right now? Would it be too far-fetched to believe that Gilbert is basically starting a national corporate recruiting campaign?

Isn't that what this Amazon fevor is for most cities? Most of the cities competing have no chance; this is really a means of leveraging attention more than actually competing for Amazon.

LMich

Oct 20, 2017, 9:12 AM

Detroit-based Kraemer Design Group architects have been keeping track of a lot of their downtown projects. Here are some photos from the past two months courtesy their facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/thekraemeredge/photos/):

Book Building: Looks like the new windows have been installed.

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22552302_10154661535085882_7582243304578558890_n.jpg?oh=992ab42cc9beee3fa1e93cc10fbe25e6&oe=5A86D524
Rebecca Bino Savage

Shinola Hotel

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22519646_10154659453665882_188542477749495121_n.jpg?oh=019174ab71de29c729b91c178a94c748&oe=5A7ED673

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22552350_10154659453535882_1904265106396332038_n.jpg?oh=be72e4f9ee365eedd41438f6a5a94682&oe=5A881E81

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22519116_10154659453520882_7416585398296130933_n.jpg?oh=d9a7a6823ae6296e961043c78f0c0608&oe=5A715ECA

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/21617753_10154598792705882_4435016483535859957_n.jpg?oh=cf9e2d3329a9627debd29bf58852029f&oe=5A72961C

Lofts at Merchants Row: This is an expansion of the Woodward Avenue apartment complex.

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22089364_10154625361850882_3969084126801406305_n.jpg?oh=d98bc1a401394f9ef7274c0d354f4af9&oe=5A84D89B

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22089851_10154625361800882_4317038220250915307_n.jpg?oh=4514df9520542999a9ffc20dc1661bbe&oe=5A697155

Farwell Building

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/21728187_10154598792675882_6524054145523076111_n.jpg?oh=f7dc2988fe3a677ac620b219d8885b0a&oe=5A71C38C

28 Grand: This micro-unit new construction tower on Capitol Park has been hosting move-ins since at least September. It's a pretty amazing use of precast concrete, which can oftentimes look really cheap. One of the two ground floor spaces has already been leased by a restaurant.

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/21740255_10154585606705882_5894947511689441384_n.jpg?oh=3cf4d4148e5300500021294b61600f84&oe=5A786F17

https://scontent.fdet1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/21317742_10154557345010882_4146398246713455205_n.jpg?oh=f8473f22c6ce65d3db16a67db1d5c67a&oe=5A65C956