DETROIT | Development & Construction: Motown Lowdown

[LMich]

To me, this opposition to this is more about symbolism than it is about the physical damage it will cause. If anything, we should be talking about capping and removing freeways that cut through the urban core, and yet the region is actually planning to make the cuts through the urban area wider, and in the most depopulated municipality in the urban area, no less.

[JonathanGRR]

I guess in an ideal world where I-75 was removed downtown (or capped) along with the Lodge and Chrysler being pushed back to I-94, the expansion would inevitably have to take place anyway. Therefore, even under a plan of urban renewal, the freeway would have to be expanded. What irks me is how many bridges will simply not be replaced.

[animatedmartian]

According to Brush Park Preservation Society, 64 Watson - The Devon Building is scheduled for demolition.

Though I can't tell if it's a full demolition or partial demolition which is supposedly what's planned. I get the feeling it's just the partial demolition.

It's the grayish building in the center here.


The plan is presumably to demolish the back half of the structure and convert the front half into 4 condos.

I actually quite like the design and it doesn't seem all the complicated. It'd be cool if more of these were built to become modern rowhomes.













Source: https://www.facebook.com/pages/64-Wa...56001704452304

[LMich]

It's actually a walk-up apartment building, but I'd like to see more of these, too. I'd actually like to see Detroit gets back to its small apartment building past, where you had many of these on residential corners (and sometimes mid-block) intermixed with the single-family homes. You could also build these (with less expensive interiors) in poorer neighborhood, too, to replace some of the single-family housing.

[animatedmartian]

It's not really real development per se (it'll be demolished as soon as they're done with it), but for a little while Detroit while have a little Chinatown on the old Statler site.

TRANSFORMERS 4's Asian Town Set Construction in Detroit is Taking Shape

By TheDailySuperHero - 7/8/2013

Construction crews for Transformers 4 have been building an Asian town in Downtown Detroit for a couple weeks now and it's finally starting to take shape. Filming at this location, which is at Washington Blvd. near Grand Circus Park, is scheduled to begin in early August.

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fansit.../news/?a=82833

[hudkina]

So it's now politically incorrect to say Chinatown? LOL

BTW, I actually like the plans for that particular building. Demolishing the back half isn't a great loss, and it's kind of a neat mix between modern and historic.

[JonathanGRR]

That townhouse does look rather nice! ...Part of me would like to keep the Chinatown too. haha

Renovations have begun on the Riverfront Towers Apartments. It looks like there won't be too much work done on the outside besides landscaping:

Renderings: $5 million renovation of Riverfront Towers Apartments begins
David Muller | July 8, 2013

DETROIT, MI – The Hayman Company has begun construction and renovation work on the Riverfront Towers Apartments at 100 Riverfront Ave. in downtown Detroit.

The 24-acre, three-building property, which The Hayman Company took control of in November, is the former living space of Motown icons such as Aretha Franklin, Rosa Parks and Coleman Young. The project is expected to cost more than $5 million.

Renovations call for upgrades to all apartments, including new appliances, plumbing and interior work, as well as remodeling all hallways and lobby spaces (see renderings), updating elevators and installing new roofing. There will also be upgrades to the property’s security system and outdoor landscape.

The Hayman Company will be leasing the building, and said in a release that the two towers’ occupancy rate has already gone from 60 percent to 94 percent in the past six months.

“The time was right for ensuring these riverfront jewels are part of the downtown living equation,” Andrew Hayman, president of The Hayman Company, said in a statement. “Things are happening in the city today that haven’t taken place in decades. We’re aiming to once again be at that epicenter.”
...

http://www.mlive.com/business/detroi...l#incart_river

[Rizzo]

The Devon proposal is bad-ass awesome.

[LMich]

Originally Posted by jonathan.jam

Renovations have begun on the Riverfront Towers Apartments. It looks like there won't be too much work done on the outside besides landscaping:

http://www.mlive.com/business/detroi...l#incart_river

I've always wished they'd build more towers, as when these apartments are properly managed, they rarely have vacancies. With the Joe's days numbered, maybe an ambitious and visionary developer could take the development east. Or, maybe to the west. Anyone know who owns the large parcel directly adjacent and to the west of the current complex?

I'd also like to see the transportation infrastructure reconfigured in this area, particularly for pedestrians. Just because of how the Lodge meets Jefferson beneath Cobo, you're never going to really connect the towers to downtown in a seamless way, but I think you could really develop up along Sixth to join them with Corktown better, and from there across the Lodge to central part of downtown.

[subterranean]

Jefferson is about to get a facelift, likely making it more ped friendly, between cobo and I-375. Probably nothing major, though.

[animatedmartian]

More small restaurants coming on to the scene.

Handsome, rustic Ottava Via restaurant in Corktown nears opening
By Sylvia Rector July 9, 2013



The turn-of-the-century Dime Savings Bank branch at the corner of Michigan and Eighth in Corktown is expected to open soon as Ottava Via — Italian for Eighth Street — with a menu of meats and cheeses, salads, small plates, Neapolitan-style pizzas, and a small, carefully chosen group of entrees.

The restaurant and staff are ready to go as soon as final inspections are complete, owners David Steinke and Tim Springstead said Monday. Both men are also involved in other nearby businesses: Steinke is co-owner of Mercury Burger & Bar farther north on Michigan and Springstead is co-owner of Nemo’s, directly across the street.

The strikingly handsome main dining room — the old bank lobby with towering ceilings and suspended globe lighting — is decorated in an eclectic blend of rustic reclaimed furniture, Italian market fixtures and antique objets d’art.

....

http://www.freep.com/article/2013070...own-Ottava-Via

Fatburger Dreams Big in Midtown
July 9, 2013, by Paul Beshouri



It's been two years in the making, but Midtown's very own iteration of Beverly Hills-based burger outlet Fatburger is apparently hurtling toward an opening before the end of July 2013.

An Eater Detroit source wandered by the Studio One building earlier today and noticed an open door and a parked car with the space's developer inside conveniently located nearby. The space, which has had signs advertising the coming burger onslaught for years, is aiming for a July 29 opening, according to Great Lakes Fast Food general manager Gary Shelton, the local Fatburger franchisee.

...

http://detroit.curbed.com/archives/2...-open-soon.php

[LMich]

Originally Posted by subterranean

Jefferson is about to get a facelift, likely making it more ped friendly, between cobo and I-375. Probably nothing major, though.

Hadn't heard of this. Does the city have a webpage detailing exactly what the project consists of? Speaking of street redos, I'm pretty sure Woodward is being redone in the coming months, yet MDOT doesn't have the project up on its website, so I don't know.

It's not a horrible streetscape, as it is. The only problem is that it's so damned wide. lol But, even that can't really be remedied, as the reason it's so wide is because two freeways terminate into not even a mile apart.

[uaarkson]

Has there been any news on the M1 project? It's supposed to start soon.

[LMich]

Originally Posted by uaarkson

Has there been any news on the M1 project? It's supposed to start soon.

Construction is still scheduled to start next month. A Crain's article from about three weeks ago reported that they were still selecting from bids for a construction manager and general contractor (the bids were in by May 24), so that process is running a bit behind, but they are still saying that construction is scheduled for next month. BTW, construction will include replacing the Woodward Avenue bridge over the Ford Freeway.

A second bid is going out later in the year for the maintenance and vehicle storage facility near the north end of the line. After that will come the bid for the actual streetcars while the line in under construction, and then the last bid is finding and operator for the system. That bid comes in December or early next year.

So, that's the timeline.

[LMich]

Hadn't even hrd about this:

New Opera House seats boast Detroit Tigers baseball, hot dogs, burgers

by Mark Stryker | Detroit Free Press

July 12, 2013

You won’t be able to see Mozart, Verdi or Wagner from the newest nosebleed seats at the Detroit Opera House. But you will be able to catch Cabrera, Fielder and Verlander. And when Miggy knocks one out of the park, it’s permissible to yell, “Bravo!”

The Coors Light Sky Deck at the Detroit Opera House celebrates its grand opening Friday, offering a rooftop beer garden, modest aluminum bleachers and a one-of-a-kind view straight into Comerica Park from straightaway center field that takes in nearly the entire diamond. You know what the real estate folks say:

Location. Location. Location.

Nobody will mistake the Sky Deck experience for the peerless intensity of sitting inside the ballpark. It’s approximately 450 feet from the roof to the center field wall, which means it’s a little more than 900 feet from home plate. By comparison, some of the famous rooftop seats across the street from Wrigley Field in Chicago are as close as 450 feet from home plate.

...

[animatedmartian]

What's best verdict for jail site?
By Dustin Walsh
July 14, 2013



In the middle of a 60-day construction moratorium on the over-budget, half-built Wayne County Jail site, the county is asking developers: What now?

Wayne County launched a request for information on June 26, calling for proposals to redevelop the five justice properties controlled by the county, including the jail construction site, the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice, the juvenile detention center and both of the current jail sites.

Real estate brokers and developers wax poetic on the area's possible uses -- an expanded entertainment district, new office space or mixed-use developments -- but the county says it needs the financials to match up.

The county issued $200 million in bonds to pay for the jail in December 2010 after the county commission approved the sale of up to $300 million in bonds for the project. But the project quickly went over budget with a final price tag of $391 million, prompting the county to halt the construction June 7.

...

However, the costs of demolishing the existing infrastructure could be a hurdle for developers, said a local construction expert who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"It's going to be very expensive," the source said. "Given the design of a jail and how stout those buildings are, it's going to be a premium to knock down and repurpose those properties."

Cullen said the cost of redevelopment is a concern, but he stressed that the decision on a future development isn't on the table of discussion yet.

"Is it a complicated development? Sure, but mainly because no one knows what they are developing yet," Cullen said. "It's not like the county is going to get a binding offer through the RFI, but an analysis should be sufficient to get the ball rolling."

Lee said the county won't settle for a bargain-basement real estate offer.

"Whatever we do needs to make overall economic sense" for the county, Lee said. "If a buyer comes out and says, 'We've got a package that will make you whole,' we may have a deal. But if someone brings a lowball offer, we'll find a way to finish the current project."

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...-for-jail-site

A while ago, I had saw on Detroit's zoning map that the site that the new jail is going up on was originally zoned for high density residential/mixed use development. So I've always imagined high-rise residential going there. But if there's enough interest to redevelop the entire district, there's a really good chance for creating a continuous neighborhood from Greektown to Ford Field and Comerica Park.

And ya know, to step back for a moment, just about every corner of downtown supposedly has interest for development. The only area still with tumbleweeds is the area between Michigan and Fort to the Lodge. I imagine that area might become an extension of the CBD with hotels and office space.

But not to get too far ahead, my main point is that I really hope a construction boom is imminent. All these plans and ideas are floating around but so far not much terribly major has happened (aside from growth in retail) and it's kinda of a tease.

[LMich]

I'm kind of worried about that anonymous source complaining about how hard it would be, financially, to knock down anything already built. That's really kind of code for the fact that they expect further public dollars to reclear the site, and that ain't gonna happen. I suggest that if any private developer gets the site, that they try and take what's already there and turn lemons into lemonade.

It would actually seem to me that the county just needs to finish the project, but with an abbreviated design. There always seems to be "interest", downtown, but the developers seem to think the city and county are desperate enough that they can just offer any price. It feels unseemly and vulturey. So far, only Ilitch and Gilbert are putting their money where their mouth is going from "interest" to solid plans and actual construction. All the parties in this downtown market still seem disjointed, and I'd like to see more coordination and more fair dealing on all sides, because things are doing good downntown almost in spite of many of the parties involved.

Speaking of the good things happening downtown...

Troy tech firm looking for office in downtown Detroit, hosting job fairs this week

By David Muller | MLive.com

July 15, 2013

DETROIT, MI - Stories of data loss in the media, from Facebook breaches all the way to Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency contract worker who leaked American spy activities to the press, are, in part, helping to fuel Creative Breakthrough’s growth.

“Believe or not, it’s a boon for our business,” President and CEO Steve Barone said.

Now, the Troy-based network security firm is looking to hire a variety of positions as it continues to expand and also look for a presence in downtown Detroit.

Barone said the company, which currently has 65 employees, plans to hire another 50 people before the end of the year. It is especially interested in software engineers, or at least people who have analytical skills and are interested in software development.

“My commitment to Detroit means we got to find people who maybe aren’t already out there as expert engineers, and instead we have to make them into them,” Barone said. Those candidates could be working at Best Buy, for example, but Creative Breakthroughs can then train them in-house, he said.

...

Meanwhile, Barone said the company is slowly outgrowing its base in Troy, and has been looking for a space in downtown Detroit. The Detroit office would be in addition to the Troy headquarters, not in lieu of it.

“We’re looking downtown,” Barone said. “We’re talking to (Quicken Loans founder) Dan Gilbert’s group, we’re talking to a couple others. There’s a lot of cool software and innovative companies down there.”

...

[animatedmartian]

Ah yes, public funding... Always forget about that. Hey where's that dude that wanted to buy Belle Isle for 1B? Maybe he'll be interested in converting some jails.

[JonathanGRR]

Short of Ford or Chrysler moving downtown, I cannot imagine the need (yet) for such a large development area that would satisfy the county's desires for the sites.

[mind field]

Troy tech firm looking for office in downtown Detroit, hosting job fairs this week


Great news!!! Downtown Detroit is undoubtedly a nexus for technology companies now, Ann Arbor better look out!