DETROIT | Development & Construction: Motown Lowdown

[Michi]

Thanks for the visual progress at the Auburn site!

I'm shocked at how massive the parking proportions are for the Hudson's block rendering! I realize as downtown grows, there is a need for accessible parking, but my hope is that it develops more hidden in the urban design. The sightlines at the 10-story Lofts of Merchant's Row across the street would be cavernous, fume-infested, open parking slabs...looking above the 12th level, you'd see some odd residential structure (a fraction of the scale of the garage it sits on) floating above the city. I thought the garage at 1001 Woodward was gawdy enough, and that's the gateway to Campus Martius. I still have hope for the Monroe block design, but I swear, if cars are going to be parked over Campus Martius frontage, we sure as heck aren't trying hard enough!

[montréaliste]

Originally Posted by Michi

Thanks for the visual progress at the Auburn site!

I'm shocked at how massive the parking proportions are for the Hudson's block rendering! I realize as downtown grows, there is a need for accessible parking, but my hope is that it develops more hidden in the urban design. The sightlines at the 10-story Lofts of Merchant's Row across the street would be cavernous, fume-infested, open parking slabs...looking above the 12th level, you'd see some odd residential structure (a fraction of the scale of the garage it sits on) floating above the city. I thought the garage at 1001 Woodward was gawdy enough, and that's the gateway to Campus Martius. I still have hope for the Monroe block design, but I swear, if cars are going to be parked over Campus Martius frontage, we sure as heck aren't trying hard enough!

Yes, as you say in a nutshell; they are not trying hard enough. In spite of the hoopla promises Gilbert makes about a new downtown with increased affluence and integrated transit; his building for the Hudson's site is like a third strike for detroiters wanting sustainable projects. The need to cut with the city's past mistakes; the doing away with streetcars, the demolition of JL Hudson's and all the rest is not dealt with in a proper way. There is enough parking in the area to begin with. Go back to the drawing board guys and do something extraordinary for the city! A few stories of condos and many stories of parking will not attract retailers or metro detroiters or tourists. It will in fact send a message to non-detroiters that the city is not ready for a turnaround.

[subterranean]

Looks like Book Cadillac is in a bit of trouble:

Detroit— The Westin Book Cadillac avoided defaulting on a $15 million loan this month after a city pension fund intervened, raising questions about the health of a landmark hotel and symbol of the city's economic redevelopment.
The Detroit Police and Fire pension fund made a partial interest payment March 1 after hotel owner John Ferchill outlined the Book Cadillac's financial condition.
The Cleveland-based developer told pension trustees the project has lost $23 million after deals to sell condominiums atop the hotel fell through.
More than three years after the hotel opened to fanfare with a celebrity-studded gala and a $180 million restoration, the Book Cadillac's largest original lender has pulled out, only nine or 10 of the 67 luxury condominiums have been sold and daily room rates are running below projections.


http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120316/BIZ/203160376/Financial-woes-cast-shadow-Book-Cadillac?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

[DetroitSky]

Saw workers moving dirt today at the Whole Foods site. Also saw workers going in and out of the old Lane Bryant building and it's neighbor that are both owned by Bedrock/Quicken. Good to see.

[mind field]

GM's media-buying firm expected to bring 200 jobs to Detroit
By Zlati Meyer
Detroit Free Press Business Writer
March 18, 2012

General Motors' new media-buying company is expected to bring an estimated 200 new jobs to downtown Detroit.

Carat, which is owned by the London-headquartered Aegis Group, is opening an office on the 23rd floor of One Detroit Center.

http://www.freep.com/article/2012031...xt|FRONTPAGE|p


Well the trickle keeps on coming in! Skidmore studios, Carat, Title Source, Silverstein (think that's the name of the ad agency in the Palms Building), the new patent office all coming to Detroit.

[animatedmartian]

http://detroit.curbed.com/archives/2...quare-foot.php

Detroit's Residential Rental Rate Goal: $2 Per Square Foot

Chairman and founder of Quicken Loans (and bulk buyer of downtown buildings), Dan Gilbert, must have tipped someone heavily at the Crain's Detroit department of graphics. In the above image he is the tallest of the heavy-hitting Detroit developers when in real life, the man is puny 5 foot 6.

Speaking of coming up short, the article discusses how current rental rates are the hold up in more residential development: in downtown and midtown, the average residential rental rate is $1.25 per square foot but to turn a profit, projects need to bring in around $2 per square foot.

"Filling that gap between rental income and project cost remains the role of subsidies from federal, state and local governments as well as philanthropy. There are hopes of a virtuous circle: As more projects push up the limits of the rental rate, more development can occur to push the limits higher yet again. "

Gilbert has been exploring plans for a 350-unit apartment building on the site just north of the Compuware Building on Woodward Avenue. He is optimistic because "The marketplace works, and especially when you're 98 percent occupied with high demand, prices will go up." One encouraging sign is the Broderick Tower, where regular units are around $1.35 per square foot, but the penthouse units are more than $2 per square foot.

[Rizzo]

$2 / square foot is very ambitious. That's equivalent to alpha level cities inherent of a large downtown office market and the existence of well built up shopping and retail districts. I suppose if the projects are amenity heavy (which adds more cost) you can achieve that. Typically when prices go above $2, you are paying for the location and everything around...not so much the building itself.

[RoseCityFreePress]

Its great to see big Developments across the river. It seems like over here in Windsor, we are getting a lot of big projects but most of them are being paid for by the City, Province or Federal Governments. Not to much private stuff going on. Although the Government projects range in the billons. Good on you Detroit

[Onn]

Michigan economy hits 6-year high



The Detroit News
Brian O'Connor
March 30, 2012

Bolstered by the mild winter and continuing weakness in housing, the auto rebound is spreading to other parts of the Michigan economy, boosting economic conditions to their best level in six years.

According to a new Comerica Bank estimate of the state economy, the recovery is starting to reach beyond Detroit's Big Three. That trend also is reflected in the February jobs report released Wednesday, which showed that during the past 12 months the state added as many jobs in business and professional services as it did in manufacturing.

Another piece of encouraging economic news released Thursday was the state's announcement that personal income in Michigan grew at the strongest rate since 2000, just before Michigan entered its decade-long "one-state recession."

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz1qdOOztN7

[Onn]

Tigers' new state-of-the-art scoreboard up and running



The Detroit News
Tony Paul
March 30, 2012

Detroit— With one week until the Tigers return home to open the 2012 season, Comerica Park workers are feverishly working to put the final touches on a series of impressive ballpark upgrades.

The biggest project, the installment of the state-of-the-art video board, is nearly complete. The 6,000-square-foot, high-definition screen was up and running Friday morning during the Tigers' announcement of a business partnership with the "Pure Michigan" campaign.

After the press conference, the Tigers subbed out the "Pure Michigan" logo on the scoreboard with action videos. To say the least, fans are in for a treat.

It puts to shame the old 1,008-square-foot video board, with was to the right of two out-of-date panels that used only bulbs to display statistical information.

Those panels are gone. And so, hopefully, are the Atari-like graphics, like the clapping hands.

...

Technology upgrades are elsewhere in the ballpark. Underneath the new video board, which will be the largest in the state of Michigan, is a larger, high-def panel to show pitch speeds and pitch counts.

Throughout the ballpark, flat-panel televisions have replaced the old tube screens, too.

The Tigers also are wrapping up upgrades to all their suites. In them, they're renovating the bathrooms and installing new carpeting, furniture and state-of-the-art food-heating equipment.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz1qdPjQTzV

[Rizzo]

The Tigers text looks good. It appears they've realized some of the cheesier retro motifs had to go.

[RoseCityFreePress]

The new screen looks amazing. I seen them testing it the other day when I was in town. Can't wait for Opening day!

[LMich]

Elizabeth Conley / The Detroit News

Louis Aguilar | The Detroit News

April 3, 2012

Detroit's shuttered Hotel Pontchartrain finds a buyer

The 25-story Detroit hotel that once was an upscale landmark has a new owner who plans to renovate it as a Crowne Plaza hotel, an attorney who brokered the deal said Monday.

The sale of the former Hotel Pontchartrain across from Cobo Center closed last week, said David Findling, the court-appointed receiver who has controlled the downtown property since 2009 after the building went into foreclosure. He wouldn't disclose the sale price or the buyer.

...

There is an agreement in principle with Crowne Plaza to run the property, but there are details still to be worked out, Bohde said.

"I've been told they have plans for a 413-room hotel," he said.

Findling would only say that the buyer is a University of Michigan graduate who has been in involved in about 40 hotel development deals.

"He is well-financed and very capable," Findling said. "Work (on the building) is expected to begin this summer."

...

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...text|FRONTPAGE

[Onn]

Originally Posted by RoseCityFreePress

The new screen looks amazing. I seen them testing it the other day when I was in town. Can't wait for Opening day!

I can't wait to see it in action, sure beats the old scoreboard! And I agree the new lettering on top looks so much more professional.

[Onn]

May not bring a ton of workers to downtown in the short term, but no doubt a big PR victory and vote of confidence for the city!

Twitter to open office in downtown Detroit



The Detroit News
4 April 2012

Twitter, the San Francisco-based social media company, is opening an office in Detroit at the M@dison Building, according to a Quicken Loans Inc. statement released Wednesday.

"A handful" of employees will work in the renovated building owned by Rock Ventures LLC, the umbrella group that coordinates and integrates real estate and investments for Dan Gilbert's portfolio of companies, which includes online mortgage giant Quicken Loans, said Carolyn Artman, a Quicken Loans spokeswoman, in an email. Twitter is in the process of moving in, she said.

Gov. Rick Snyder's spokeswoman Geralyn Lasher said in a tweet that Twitter's move is "great news!"

Twitter hopes to hire more workers when it expands its presence in Detroit, where employees will help advertising agencies and marketers use Twitter's advertising products, according to the statement.

"Detroit's emerging mix of automotive and digital cultures made it a natural location for Twitter's newest office," said Adam Bain, Twitter's president of global revenue, in a statement. "We're excited to work face-to-face with the city's most established brands and happy to play a role in downtown Detroit's digital renaissance."

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz1r5Tl1xiw

[Onn]

RoboCop is coming to Detroit, it's just a matter of when



The Detroit News
Holly Fournier
4 April 2012

A statue of a robotic cyborg from a movie set in Detroit's future is one step closer to having a present-day home.

Hollywood robot statue designer Fred Barton's life-sized model of RoboCop is being scanned at a studio in Canada so it can be cast in bronze with otherworldly proportions.

"The statue's definitely coming," said Jerry Paffendorf, who spearheaded the controversial 2011 campaign to raise money and find a home in Detroit for the statue.

"The only thing that's up in the air is the timeline and where it's going to go."

MGM is "quite entertained and interested" and has officially licensed the project, Paffendorf said.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz1r5Z0C3Pc

[animatedmartian]

Broderick Tower open house offers amazing views on Opening Day in Detroit

Motown Construction Partners, LLC held an open house today to show off ongoing redevelopment of the 34-story Broderick Tower in downtown Detroit.
Fred Beal took media through the building this morning before opening tours to the public, offering reporters a view from the rooftop that residents will not have access to.

While most floors still need work, Beal said the all infrastructure is in place and the project is roughly 80 percent complete. More than 500 people turned out for an open house last fall, and his company has deposits on 75 of the building's 125 residential units.

The first floor is expected to house a wine bar, beer hall and restaurant. The second through fourth floors will contain office space. The remaining floors will be devoted to residential units starting at $650 a month for a studio and running up to $5,000 a month for "sky top penthouses."

http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/in..._river_default

A carpenters unions is protesting work rules at the Broderick Tower, but the dispute has not slowed the project.

[Onn]

Demolition of Cobo Arena begins to make way for overhaul of convention center



The Detroit News
Louis Aguilarand, Susan Whitall
6 April 2012

Detroit— Along the downtown riverfront Thursday morning, a giant crane began to tear down the wall separating Cobo Center and the former Cobo Arena, smashing one of the last physical remains of the legendary concert venue.

The space is part of a nearly $300 million renovation of the entire convention center expected to be completed by 2014, though major parts of it will be ready next year. The former 12,000-seat Cobo Arena will get glass walls and an atrium that will turn it into a state-of-the-art event and banquet space with sweeping views of the Detroit River and the city skyline.

"I'm sure the new Cobo in the future will provide people with a whole new host of wonderful memories," said Thom Connors, regional vice president and general manager of Cobo Center.

The entire convention center is getting a vast overhaul, which will add nearly 125,000 square feet of convention space. The expansion was necessary to keep the North American International Auto Show, the annual event the city was in danger of losing.

It also is expected to make the facility more competitive in attracting conventions and other events.

The Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority said the extra space gives Cobo the capability to host most of the world's largest conventions.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...#ixzz1rEmYk5uc

[animatedmartian]

This is separate from the Meijers project (which is set to start next month).

Bills will pave way for development of State Fairgrounds site

Gov. Rick Snyder will sign bills in Detroit on Monday to allow redevelopment of the Michigan State Fairgrounds, mostly unused since the annual agricultural fair closed in 2009.

The future of the property -- 162 acres near 8 Mile and Woodward -- has been up in the air since the state fair shut down, the victim of state budget cuts. The site generated little income but costs the state nearly $895,000 a year to maintain.

Once Snyder signs the bills, the property could be sold to the city or a private developer or given to a state land bank for redevelopment. A Snyder spokesman said detailed plans for the property haven't been decided. But the city's recent consent agreement with the state -- reached this week to avoid the appointment of an emergency manager to rein in Detroit's budget crisis -- calls for the possibility of a new commuter rail stop on the grounds and an unspecified "neighborhood and commercial center on the site."

...

http://www.freep.com/article/2012040...irgrounds-site

I had some good memories there...sad to see it go.

[LMich]

It was really cool that Michigan's state fair was right in the middle of its largest urban area. I remember seeing the "world's largest" pig. lol The thing was so obese that it couldn't stand up, really more sad than interesting.

Anyway, I remember a few years back actually seeing the conept for the area. It was in the office of a family friend or a friend, or rather to say, didn't really know the folks. Anyway, I remember it including a hotel in addition to what was mentioned. They have it planned as a TOD.