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  #561  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2007, 4:43 PM
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Thumbs up the big D

I'm so glad to see Detroit is finally getting some project proposals. Especially since the crisis the state is going through.
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  #562  
Old Posted Oct 15, 2007, 11:11 PM
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The demolition of old Tiger Stadium began today (10.15.07)
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  #563  
Old Posted Oct 16, 2007, 12:36 AM
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The Book looks like it's going to be truly great. I just hope that soon the Griswold will began construction so we can start another construction project.
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  #564  
Old Posted Oct 16, 2007, 8:39 AM
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1001 Woodward, Possibilities? BOA HQ?

I'm curious what everyone thinks of this story, and what potentially could go in there if resold by the union. Ideas?






Woodward condo project falters

Campus Martius landmark is key part of downtown's rebirth

Robert Snell / The Detroit News



DETROIT -- The repo man could soon seize a landmark 25-story skyscraper near Campus Martius, according to court records that detail troubles behind a high-profile project that once promised to bring $1 million condos to the lower Woodward area.

A district judge Thursday could decide whether the 1001 Woodward office building, formerly called the First Federal building, will revert to its previous owner, a local union pension fund, within 90 days.

Touted in 2004 as the third jewel in the renewal of Campus Martius, the 1001 Woodward project is in jeopardy of becoming arguably the most visible failure along the resurgent Woodward financial district, one that comes amid a slew of condominiums and loft projects downtown and a cooling office market.

"Our hope is someone else picks up the deal," said George Jackson, president of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., a public/private city agency promoting Detroit development.

A company headed by Warren-based developer Lorenzo Cavaliere owns the skyscraper but has defaulted on a land contract and owes more than $5.3 million, according to Wayne County Circuit Court records. A judge Thursday could order that the skyscraper revert back to the Operating Engineers' Local 324 pension fund, the previous owners, unless Cavaliere's company pays the balance of the land contract.

Defaults aren't limited to the building itself, which has some commercial tenants.

Cavaliere's company and a related group owe more than $23 million in land contract payments and loans for the skyscraper and an adjacent 12-story parking garage, according to court records. The related company also owes about $1 million in loans to a private economic development fund and $500,000 to the city through a taxpayer-funded group.

"We wish we weren't in this position," said Edward "Chip" Miller, vice chairman of the Detroit Investment Fund, the economic development arm of Detroit Renaissance, a community group, which is suing to recoup the $1 million loan. "It's one of those situations I'm not sure I can say a lot about. I don't think we're going to be hurt badly."

Hopes high in 2004

The condo/office project was unveiled in 2004 and was expected to complement the $350 million Compuware headquarters across Woodward and the $15 million Campus Martius Park.

The state gave 1001 Woodward developers tax credits worth $3.8 million and up to $1 million in local and state taxes in November 2004 to revitalize the area. The skyscraper and garage were expected to create up to 400 jobs and generate more than $50.5 million in private investment.

"These highly underutilized properties have burdened Detroit for years," Gov. Jennifer Granholm said when announcing the credits for the Woodward project and one other. "With the backing of state assistance, these sites will create attractive new places for people to live and work in the city."

Plans eventually called for single-unit condos, penthouses and "sky mansions."

Instead, the 1001 Woodward project and parking garage are creating past-due bills and lawsuits involving two companies linked to Cavaliere. One of them, 1001 Woodward Office LLC, owns the skyscraper and an affiliated company, 1001 Woodward Parking LLC, owns the adjacent parking deck.

Cavaliere's company bought the skyscraper on a land contract for $4.7 million more than three years ago from a limited liability company that represents the Operating Engineers' Local 324 pension fund.

Cavaliere's company has since defaulted and owes more than $5.3 million, according to court records.

If the pension fund gets the building back Thursday, Cavaliere's company would have 90 days to pay off the land contract and keep the skyscraper, according to Larry Dudek, a lawyer representing the company set up by the pension fund.

"They either want to get paid or get the building back," Dudek said.

The building is in a prime spot, but there are fewer commercial real-estate loans being issued amid a subprime loan crisis, Dudek said.

So the pension fund could get stuck with a building it can't sell.

"They won't know until they reacquire the asset," he said.

It was unclear whether Cavaliere's company would try to reclaim the property if it is forfeited. "I really can't discuss my client's intentions," Cavaliere attorney Mark A. Stern said.

The skyscraper is located near two spots being offered by the city to Quicken Loans in hopes it will relocate its headquarters there. One site is the old Hudson's department store site on Woodward, just north of Compuware and 1001 Woodward.

Considering possibilities

The Hudson's site could be less attractive to Quicken if the nearby 1001 Woodward becomes blighted, but the adjacent parking deck could be leased for Compuware's employees, Jackson said. There are other possible companies that could redevelop the skyscraper, he said. "We have had a number of people express interest in it," he said.

The growth corporation, through the Detroit Downtown Development Authority, has $500,000 in taxpayer money invested in the parking deck. A company linked to Cavaliere received the $500,000 loan and land to build the parking deck three years ago and has defaulted and owes more than $471,000, according to Glen Long Jr., the Detroit development agency's chief financial officer.

Brian Holdwick, the agency's vice president of business and financial services, doesn't consider the project dead, but said it is a victim of changing market conditions. He said the office market has dried up downtown and the parking garage, while initially built to support a skyscraper project that was designed with more commercial space, is too big for a predominantly residential project.

Meanwhile, there are now more options for people who want to buy condominiums or lofts downtown, Holdwick said. "It's more competitive," he said.

Court records describe tough conditions inside the twin-office complex and a string of bad debts tied to Cavaliere.

Occupancy is less than 10 percent, and the air conditioning didn't work in July, forcing tenant Charter One Bank to spend $25,896 on portable air-conditioning units, according to court records. "It was bad enough that the bank was forced to close," temporarily, Charter One attorney Kevin Kalczynski said.

DTE Energy sent a shutoff notice Sept. 27, and two commercial tenants have indicated they plan to move out, court records show. Plus, Cavaliere's company owes more than $227,000 in property taxes, according to the Wayne County Treasurer's Office.

The land contract isn't the only financial problem facing the building and adjacent parking deck.

A company affiliated with Cavaliere was sued in April in Wayne County Circuit Court after it defaulted on an $18 million loan from Charter One Bank that paid for the parking deck construction, according to court records. Cavaliere's office is located in the same office suite in Warren as the company that received the loan, which was backed by a guaranty from Cavaliere and others.

That company, 1001 Woodward Parking LLC, failed to make loan payments earlier this year, and the loan amount had grown to $18.3 million by April, court records indicate.

The same company also defaulted on a $1 million loan from the Detroit Investment Fund, and the fund is suing Cavaliere and others to recoup the money. Cavaliere is named in that lawsuit because he issued a guaranty.

You can reach Robert Snell at (313) 222-2028 or rsnell@detnews.com
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  #565  
Old Posted Oct 16, 2007, 7:31 PM
hudkina hudkina is offline
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I'm thinking Bank of America tower come 2009.

What better way could they make their presence known in Detroit than by buying the building and putting a bank branch on the bottom floor.
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  #566  
Old Posted Oct 24, 2007, 4:11 AM
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I agree, despite the location I never really liked the of 1001 going condo. In the tight real estate market, I'd much rather see units that could go into historic buildings or new construction, not being drained away by 60's era office buildings.
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  #567  
Old Posted Oct 28, 2007, 10:20 PM
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Sunday, Oct. 28, 2007

Greektown Casino Area


Lil' Stubby










For comparison, the height of the hotel is one level above the lower floors that protrude further out. Those levels are equal in height to the top of the garage. So, in short, the hotel is currently one level above the garage (stairwell) complete.












.......from earlier this summer.......


Sales office for the Westin Book Cadillac

Last edited by Michi; Oct 28, 2007 at 10:44 PM.
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  #568  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2007, 10:45 PM
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What is the addition going to be on the current casino building by the people mover tracks. To be more specific, in pictures 2 and 3 what is being constructed in the foreground of the photo. Is this going to be street level retail? I think Greektown Casino should have to add some street level retail to their redo.
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  #569  
Old Posted Oct 29, 2007, 10:51 PM
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No, it's not going to be street level retail because it is being built over Lafayette Avenue. I'd imagine it is just an extension of the gaming floor on the second level. In other words, you will still be able to travel through on westbound Lafayette like you did before.
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  #570  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2007, 2:28 AM
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Anyone else think it's just bad planning to have a church next to a casino? I mean honestly. And I'm not even religious.
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  #571  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2007, 4:06 AM
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No. In fact Greektown has three churches in the immediate vicinity. Hell there is jail or two right there as well.
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  #572  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2007, 11:13 PM
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What's even worse planning is the poorest major city surrounded by the richest sprawl arguably in the entire world.
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  #573  
Old Posted Oct 30, 2007, 11:43 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Michi View Post
What's even worse planning is the poorest major city surrounded by the richest sprawl arguably in the entire world.
Funny, I was going to say, "your face!"


ba-zing.
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  #574  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2007, 12:57 AM
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I don't get it.
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  #575  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2007, 2:29 AM
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does that church in Greektown still do mass?
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  #576  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2007, 2:46 AM
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  #577  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2007, 3:06 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by subterranean View Post
Anyone else think it's just bad planning to have a church next to a casino? I mean honestly. And I'm not even religious.
I guess you don't drive down Puritan, Wyoming, Livernois et al much:

Church, liquor store, abandoned building, beauty parlor, church, church, liquor store, barber shop, church, school, auto shop, church, gas station, fast food, nightclub, church.
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  #578  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2007, 12:57 PM
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That may be the BEST place for a church. Go to the casino, lose all your money, go next door and pray.

I love the look of the new casinos and the shot in the arm it's given the city but I'm not a fan of the idea of them. Too many people's lives get upended and that's not good for a city that's already fighting so many demons.

Having said that, I did like the contrast of old and new. That's the charm of Greektown.
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  #579  
Old Posted Oct 31, 2007, 7:34 PM
hudkina hudkina is offline
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On the contrary, the city hasn't really seen a jump in any casino-related crime nor any of the social-ills that were supposed to tag along. I think most people go in knowing how much they are willing to lose ($20, $50, $200, etc.) and cut themselves off after that. It's no different than going to a nightclub and spending $70. Or spending $50 on dinner and a movie. You know that you are going in expecting to come out with less money in your pocket.
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  #580  
Old Posted Nov 2, 2007, 2:16 PM
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I'm not saying gambling is the end of western civilization. I would just rather see Detroit built on industry producing goods that people make and other people buy. Whether it's minivans or microchips, I just believe it creates a more stable environment in the long run. And as with any social vice, it's only the 5% that will have a problem controlling it. I hate to see those 5% going into forclosure and getting divorced. I know this is off topic but, for better or worse, it's part of Detroit's development.
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