DETROIT | Development & Construction: Motown Lowdown - Page 63

LMich · #**1241** Posted **Feb 7, 2012, 2:12 PM**

She's coming along, nicely....

February 4th

Mark Hall

animatedmartian · #**1242** Posted **Feb 8, 2012, 2:24 AM**

blank

animatedmartian · #**1243** Posted **Feb 9, 2012, 7:23 PM**

Progress on the Auburn. Feb 9th.

hudkina · #**1244** Posted **Feb 10, 2012, 12:06 AM**

The Auburn will really do a lot for "shrinking" that corner.

animatedmartian · #**1245** Posted **Feb 10, 2012, 1:34 AM**

I personally would have liked it a little more if it had a couple more floors with more units. But I'm at least glad there's some infill development and hope there's more to come.

subterranean · #**1246** Posted **Feb 10, 2012, 9:15 PM**

So much good news as of late. I wonder how long it will be before we hear an announcement about the old Hudson's block (wishful thinking).

Not so much development news, but I got to spend most of the week in Detroit and I had a great time. I can feel an energy in the air that I've never experienced before. I even got to go up to the 33rd floor of the David Stott! The owner is planning on getting it up to fire code and has apparently spent a few million dollars getting the elevators in working order. The 33rd floor is all setup with a bar and it looks like it's ready to roll. The 33rd floor has 360 degree views. Below are a few crappy photos

Via Curbed Detroit:

"In 2010, the building was purchased by then Florida-based Emre Uralli (recently relocated to sunny Grosse Pointe), who made plans to lease the building as office and residential space, sandwiched between lounges on the top and bottom. Recently graced with a large neon martini glass, the Stott building currently hosts the Sky Bar Lounge in the moderately ironic first-floor space. With the upstairs lounge space possibly opening during the next year, Detroiters may not yet have a fully renovated Stott building— but they will at least be able to do some fantastic vertical bar hopping.

The three Davids include the David Broderick, the David Whitney and the David Stott. All three act as gateways to West District, and as recently as a year ago, all three were vacant and fully dormant. It has long been said that as go the three Davids, so goes downtown Detroit. Today, the David Broderick is in a full redevelopment phase into apartments and retail. The David Whitney is clearly next to be re-born—as a boutique hotel and residential project. The future of the David Stott is less clear, but its skyline prominence, strategic location at the southern gateway to Capitol Park and sheer beauty makes its redevelopment a natural choice. Allowing Detroit to brag that it had brought back the Three Davids is just a bonus."

Untitled by With Any Luck, on Flickr

Untitled by With Any Luck, on Flickr

In other news, there's a new bar in Corktown near Slows BBQ serving "craft cocktails" called Sugar House:

Untitled by With Any Luck, on Flickr

Highly recommended

animatedmartian · #**1247** Posted **Feb 10, 2012, 9:32 PM**

Such an awesome view! Cool to see the Broderick from that angle.

Just wanted to point out as well, in the same picture on the block over in the T-intersection that little building has been going through renovations.

The other day:

Definitely something that could have been easily be missed, but one less vacancy in Detroit.

http://www.detroitfunk.com/?tag=30-clifford-street

Rizzo · #**1248** Posted **Feb 10, 2012, 11:50 PM**

I agree with the post above how you can really sense things are improving in places around Detroit. Whenever I'm in town on business, there's always something new. The David stott would make a fantastic residential building. I'm happy Broderick is fully leased though sad the penthouses are rented out

hudkina · #**1249** Posted **Feb 11, 2012, 12:03 AM**

The website says only 43 of the units are "reserved", though it may not be up to date. There's only a few units left in the upper 10 floors. I'd love a unit in this building, but it's just a bit too out of my range. I'm not paying $750 for a studio on the lower floors.

DetroitSky · #**1250** Posted **Feb 11, 2012, 2:06 AM**

...into a three level Buffalo Wild Wings.

I can't post the contents of the article because I'm not a subscriber and I've already accessed the site twice today, but here's the link:
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...tius-greektown

Onn · #**1251** Posted **Feb 22, 2012, 12:03 AM**

Quote:

Babcock wants new Wings arena

Louis Aguilar
The Detroit News
February 21, 2012

Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock expressed frustration Tuesday that the state government is not supporting plans to build a new hockey arena in downtown Detroit and vaguely referred to a development connected to it — a mall.

"A new facility, no question," Babcock said Tuesday morning on a 97.1 The Ticket sports radio talk show, when asked if he preferred that the Wings continue to play at Joe Louis Arena or at a new arena.

"If we want the city to come back, we got to revitalize downtown. And a big part of that's going to be the new arena, and the mall and the stuff going around it," he said. "And that's very important. That's why we need the state to jump onside. The sooner the better, if we're going to revitalize Michigan. It's got to start right here in Detroit."

An Olympia Entertainment spokeswoman did not have an immediate comment.

Wings owner Mike Ilitch, billionaire founder of a pizza, sports and entertainment empire known as Ilitch Holdings, has said for more than five years that he wants to build an arena downtown for the hockey team. He has indicated that financing is one of the snags in constructing such a facility.

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...b|topnews|text

Rizzo · #**1252** Posted **Feb 22, 2012, 12:33 AM**

Dated thinking. Stadiums don't revitalize downtowns. They give downtowns recognition but not economic growth. Ever since Comerica and Ford Field have opened up, the actual square footages of total retail and restaurants has not increased. Any development is independent of the stadiums and has nothing to do with needs of game day crowds. The stadiums may have cleaned up some blight but they also perpetuated activity dead zones downtown.

I support a new stadium, but I also feel the need to call out ignorance when necessary. Find better reasons to convince business leaders and city officials this is worth investing in. JLA is in rough shape, a new stadium would perpetuate full time jobs (construction, arch, and engineers) and it would free up land in the waterfront. But the trite "revitalize the city" statements that come with these perceived silver bullet projects is no longer convincing. If they were this new stadium would be finished and open by now.

Onn · #**1253** Posted **Feb 22, 2012, 12:43 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hayward

Dated thinking. Stadiums don't revitalize downtowns. They give downtowns recognition but not economic growth. Ever since Comerica and Ford Field have opened up, the actual square footages of total retail and restaurants has not increased. Any development is independent of the stadiums and has nothing to do with needs of game day crowds. The stadiums may have cleaned up some blight but they also perpetuated activity dead zones downtown.

I support a new stadium, but I also feel the need to call out ignorance when necessary. Find better reasons to convince business leaders and city officials this is worth investing in. JLA is in rough shape, a new stadium would perpetuate full time jobs (construction, arch, and engineers) and it would free up land in the waterfront. But the trite "revitalize the city" statements that come with these perceived silver bullet projects is no longer convincing. If they were this new stadium would be finished and open by now.

If you don't have people living down there, no the retail won't follow. If you do, and yes Detroit does need more retail, than I think the statment holds some weight. The city really needs more pratical retail though, not the specialty spaces. Hooking the two togther would be optimal, but I don't think anyone knows what the exact plans are yet.

animatedmartian · #**1254** Posted **Feb 29, 2012, 11:50 PM**

http://metrotimes.com/news/tunnel-vi...town-1.1278629

Quote:

Tunnel vision in Greektown
The Laikon Café, a link to historic Greektown, is set for demolition

New construction approved by the city of Detroit means downtown's Greektown Casino is poised to grow — even if it means that the actual Greektown will get a little smaller in the bargain.

This week, heavy machinery went to work tearing up the former Wayne County Sheriff's parking lot and headquarters across the alley behind Greektown. It was announced last July that the casino's holding company had acquired the land. After meeting with Detroit's City Planning Commission that month, the city agreed to rezone the parcel, allowing for the construction of a parking garage on the 1.1-acre lot behind Monroe Street.

According to planning commission minutes, Marvin Beatty, the casino's chief community liaison officer, said the new garage would allow the valet service to retrieve cars in 5-7 minutes — as opposed to the 20-30 minutes it takes them now.

To speed passage between the casino and the parking structure, the building that formerly housed the Laikon Café will be demolished so that a pedestrian tube, or skywalk, can be built over Monroe Street.

....

Greg Moots of the City Planning Department says that plans call for the demolition of the building that the Laikon was in, installation of the skywalk, and construction of a new building beneath it. While preservationists such as Grunow are thankful that the streetwall will at least be left intact, it's unknown how well the new building will fit in with the existing architecture.
And Greektown Casino is being tight-lipped on specifics. The casino declined to comment for this story.

Even as fans of historic Greektown complain, the fact remains that, year by year, there is less to complain about because many of the Greek restaurants have finally disappeared. With the closing of New Hellas in 2008, Cyprus Taverna in 2010, and now the Laikon gone, only a handful of actual Greek restaurants remain.

The way Kettunen sees it, the slow disappearance of Greektown is the work of the casino and the city. With frustration in his voice, he says, "As far as I'm concerned, why not just tear the whole thing [Greektown] down and build a parking lot and a bunch of tubes into the buildings? That's what it seems they're going to do anyway. And it's a shame that the city of Detroit supports that kind of development."

Location reference: http://g.co/maps/dmc2a

Rizzo · #**1255** Posted **Mar 1, 2012, 12:03 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

http://metrotimes.com/news/tunnel-vi...town-1.1278629

Location reference: http://g.co/maps/dmc2a

How stupid. Let's just say they build the garage. It would mean valet would have to run around the block.

The horror one minute makes!

Please, valet agents here in Chicago run a couple blocks to retrieve vehicles after patrons eat a $200 /plate meal. The customers don't mind. The casino is saving a minute of extra time maybe by demolishing this building?

In the future, Greektown should be stripped of its designation and renamed "Greektown Casino" There's no point in calling it a district when no such district exists. Currently, it's a really big casino with a couple of support businesses.

This is sad. Greektown is basically the last shred of vibrant fine grain street in Detroit. They also haven't rebuilt the two story commercial building on the corner. Whatever happened to that promised development?

animatedmartian · #**1256** Posted **Mar 1, 2012, 1:39 AM**

Haven't heard about that corner for a while, but I agree that it's sad and frustrating to see Greektown essentially turn into a prefab amusement park.

hudkina · #**1257** Posted **Mar 1, 2012, 2:22 AM**

You make it sound as if the entire district is being torn down...

animatedmartian · #**1258** Posted **Mar 1, 2012, 2:47 AM**

That street block pretty much is the whole district so one building means a whole lot.

And it's not like they're building anything of importance. If it was a skywalk to some type of mixed-use residential development, then it wouldn't seem as bad, but it's some useless parking garage so the valet service can be a few minutes quicker.

It's more about principals, really.

hudkina · #**1259** Posted **Mar 1, 2012, 3:35 AM**

There's no point in resorting to hyperbole. A simple, "That sucks, I wish they wouldn't do that." is all that is needed...

animatedmartian · #**1260** Posted **Mar 1, 2012, 4:06 AM**

Well, disgruntled citizens often will say something more dramatic than needed. This seemed to be typical of Detroit; Historical well preserved architecture that is occupied demolished to make way for a super-mega-block (it's only a half-block in reality, I know) development that isn't in anyway progressive.

Then again, the other restaurant owners on the block agreed to the demolition so I guess everyone else is just the sore loser in a democracy.