DETROIT | Development & Construction: Motown Lowdown

[LMich]

Moving in:

Broderick Tower property manager Eric Novack takes in the view from a window in a 2,208-square-foot three-bedroom apartment on the 27th floor of the Broderick Tower in Detroit on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012. PATRICIA BECK/Detroit Free Press

Finally, residents start moving into downtown Detroit's Broderick Tower

by John Gallagher | Detroit Free Press

November 2, 2012

After several weeks of delay over final inspection details, downtown’s Broderick Tower residential project saw its first residents move in today.

Stewart Beal, president of Beal Inc. and one of the leaders of the project, said the call went out to waiting residents around 3:30 Friday afternoon that inspectors had awarded the skyscraper a certificate of occupancy to the project. Five residents moved in immediately, and Beal said he expects 50 more to move in by the end of the weekend.

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[subterranean]

This boils down to lenders banking on the single family housing market bouncing back. They don't yet understand that it's not going to be what it was ever again. The shift in people's desire to live in cities and downtowns is mistaken for 20 and 30 somethings pre-kids wanting to experience an urban lifestyle before they settle down. They continue to remain delusional of the generational shift in housing demand, e.g. Gen Y entering the market and not wanting much to do with soulless exurban greenfield development. Even the boomers are catching on. Unfortunately they can't move until they sell their houses :p

[animatedmartian]

I think the parking situation in Detroit is pretty much a direct correlation with a lack of good transit. Just yesterday, I went downtown to an event held at the Ren Cen. Originally, I parked on Washington in front of the Detroit City Apartments. Fed the meter and walked to the PM station behind the YMCA (it took less than 5 minutes to reach it even though the Grand Circus park station was closer). I went off to do my thing and came back later to check on the meter. In an effort to find free parking (and save quarters) I parked on Woodbridge street which is a lot closer but was also jammed packed (I bumped a few bumpers trying to park, shhhhhh).

So it seems to me, at least out of this experience, the problem is definitely not the amount of parking, but is definitely the proximity to parking. I contemplated parking near a SMART bus stop and just riding it downtown, but I had other errands to do that day and it's just not a good use of time with transit. A walkable city, Detroit has not yet become. It's doable, but not really up to the standards where it beats using a car.

[The North One]

Why is there a random plant up there? lol

[cabasse]

Originally Posted by Michi

Very impressed with the interior of the Auburn. The exterior is not jaw dropping, but is a step in the right direction when compared with other recent projects in the area. I know the retail is fully leased, but the curb seems extremely "cold". Hopefully, there will be some improvements to the pedestrian experience, given the new uses...and for goodness sake, my sim city dream for Detroit intersections would be to be done with the traffic signals on wires!

it might not look quite as nice as signals on poles, but i still think the way detroit does it looks better than in most other places. (diagonally across two corners with one wire and four-sided signals vs. four poles, four wires)

@thenorthone - the customary topping out tree http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topping_out

[mhays]

Originally Posted by Michi

Just my 2 cents:

Regarding the chicken or the egg theory, I think it's clear what is happening here (at least at this point in time). With rental occupancy rates near capacity, or at least at historically high rates, residential leasing opportunities are in high demand in the downtown area and the supply is on the low side. Where is the market response that is able to fulfill an increased demand? The Broderick Tower awaits as a prime example. The financial package that was stitched together was a long time in the making and securing loans for the construction and overall project were very hard to come by. It would seem that lending institutions would recognize the positive data and numbers evolving from downtown Detroit, despite lending being difficult all over the country. But if Detroit can prove itself in numbers, what is the risk? I'm sure there is a lot of obvious components, but how much of it is the "Detroit" image of lackluster attempts at anything?

Filling buildings is great, but doing it at $1.50/sf only works when the project can be done relatively cheaply. If you can support rents quite a bit higher, you'll see a lot more projects.

[JonathanGRR]

Hey! I was in Detroit yesterday for MCBA State Finals at Ford Fields. When we went to get onto I-75, we drove by a heart center that is under construction. The completion date is set for 2014. Does anyone have any information on this?

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by jonathan.jam

Hey! I was in Detroit yesterday for MCBA State Finals at Ford Fields. When we went to get onto I-75, we drove by a heart center that is under construction. The completion date is set for 2014. Does anyone have any information on this?

One of these two buildings right?

• Video Link

Both are in the list of DMC construction projects (first two on the left column it looks like).

http://www.dmc.org/constructionprojects

[LMich]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

So it seems to me, at least out of this experience, the problem is definitely not the amount of parking, but is definitely the proximity to parking. I contemplated parking near a SMART bus stop and just riding it downtown, but I had other errands to do that day and it's just not a good use of time with transit. A walkable city, Detroit has not yet become. It's doable, but not really up to the standards where it beats using a car.

Speaking of transit, I can't for the life of me figure out a legitimate reason for the Speaker of the House and House Majority Leader blocking a simple up-or-down vote on the bills for the Southeast Michigan Regional Transit Authority that would allow the region to create a regional transit authority. Republicans always go on about the importance of local government and local countrol, but when the leaders of the region of all stripes (business, labor, advocates, etc...) literally come begging to Lansing just to get a vote to allow them the opportunity to try to work out an RTA, they are given the runaround.

There is still not a scheduled vote on this and it's been months and really years in other iterations of the idea. The ONLY reason given by any of the conservative, tea-party critics is that it would inevitably lead to a tax increase. And? If the local governments want to tax themselves, whose business is it of the state's? What's more bizarre is that it's not even likely that it could pass both houses, so why even delay the vote? Because they don't want to be on record as being the obstructionists that they are.

Sorry about the rant, but we're literally talking BRT and one, measly streetcar line, and the region can't even get that because of some party's rigid ideology. The region isn't asking the state to build and operate a rapid transit system forthe metro; they are simply asking to be given the legal authority to do it themselves at the local level. What really blows my mind is that the primary sponsor of the senate version of this bill is a Republican state senator from the UP, so it's even a minority within the state GOP blocking this vote.

[JonathanGRR]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

One of these two buildings right?

Both are in the list of DMC construction projects (first two on the left column it looks like).

http://www.dmc.org/constructionprojects

Yeah, it was the DMC Heart Center. I'm surprised that I didn't hear about this sooner. I've been trying to follow this thread as of late, but I guess Detroit just isn't a popular place on the forums.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by jonathan.jam

Yeah, it was the DMC Heart Center. I'm surprised that I didn't hear about this sooner. I've been trying to follow this thread as of late, but I guess Detroit just isn't a popular place on the forums.

Eh, most development outside of Downtown goes unnoticed unless it's on the news.

Here's a map of the development (and redevelopment) either planned, on-going, or completed in the last 10 years in Midtown. Of course quite a lot of them got delayed or postponed due to the housing market crash in 2008, but most of them were built under the radar with minimum news coverage and an even smaller group of people who were aware of them.

http://midtowndetroitinc.org/sites/d...-plan-2011.pdf

[Rizzo]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

Eh, most development outside of Downtown goes unnoticed unless it's on the news.

Here's a map of the development (and redevelopment) either planned, on-going, or completed in the last 10 years in Midtown. Of course quite a lot of them got delayed or postponed due to the housing market crash in 2008, but most of them were built under the radar with minimum news coverage and an even smaller group of people who were aware of them.

http://midtowndetroitinc.org/sites/d...-plan-2011.pdf

That's a really great and helpful map. Never knew it existed.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by Hayward

That's a really great and helpful map. Never knew it existed.

Yep, and in case you also hadn't noticed, UCCA (University Cultural Center Association) changed to MDI (Midtown Detroit Inc). It's where I got the mentioned map from.

http://midtowndetroitinc.org/

[LMich]

Yep, UCCA and the New Center Council merged, so that Midtown and New Center are know marketed as one commercial association.

[mousquet]

Bon, it's been a while since the project for the Whitney building was announced already.

"All of the financial resources have been identified. It's our intent to get construction underway before the end of this year." they say there:

http://www.modeldmedia.com/devnews/d...oit102312.aspx

[JonathanGRR]

Thanks for the map! I had no idea that so much was going on in Midtown. To me, all the work there is a testament to a revival beginning in Detroit (more so than if the work was happening Downtown). Water is the big thing nowadays, so you would expect development to be happening along the riverfront. Since Midtown has no natural geographic draw, it indicates that the market there is good enough to be able to do without it.
(I either just mad perfect sense, or I rambled; please let me know which!)

*On a side note, does anyone know why Downtown Detroit developed where it did? Most cities that are along coastline usually spring up around a river that empties into the larger body of water (lakes for the Midwest). Detroit is super close the the River Rouge, so it has always puzzled me why it didn't develop more rapidly around that spot. To me, this is one of the unavoidable flaws that was put on Detroit from the beginning.

[subterranean]

It is my understanding that modern Detroit developed where it did because it was the halfway point between the iron mines of the U.P. and coal in Pennsylvania, both essential materials to the auto industry. They are also heavy and used in massive quantities, so the Great Lakes made shipment cheap comparably. Also, the trade link to Canada should be obvious. I'm not sure why, after the massive fire in 1805 that Woodward emulated L'enfant-esque baroque plans of wide, spindly avenues. Possibly just grandiosity. But I do know that the location was the most primo location for industry, so I'm not sure how you view its location as a pitfall. Everything was tertiary to manufacturing eventually, and the reason it ever became a major city.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by jonathan.jam

Thanks for the map! I had no idea that so much was going on in Midtown. To me, all the work there is a testament to a revival beginning in Detroit (more so than if the work was happening Downtown). Water is the big thing nowadays, so you would expect development to be happening along the riverfront. Since Midtown has no natural geographic draw, it indicates that the market there is good enough to be able to do without it.
(I either just mad perfect sense, or I rambled; please let me know which!)

Detroit's coastline was always swampy and jagged so development never really took off like you'd think it would. Another large factor was Detroit's spoke-and-wheel road layout. Unlike a perfectly gridded city like Chicago (where the coastline is highly developed), you can get to downtown Detroit pretty easily using just a handful of roads (whereas Chicago has no focal point that any group of roads converge on).

Grand Boulevard used to be the ring road that outlined the city of Detroit. When a railroad line was built through Detroit, it followed a diagonal path but curved a bit near Grand and Woodward. This made it ideal for an industrial/commercial center away from the waterfront. New Center was born. As Detroit became more populated, the area between New Center and Downtown became more desirable for commercial and multifamily development. It's why you have single family homes in Brush Park which sort of seem out of place given their proximity to downtown.

In modern times, the freeways parallel the radial roads enough that they lead a decent flow into the area. If we had a high speed rail to Chicago, the station would be in New Center, so it very well would benefit Midtown. You made perfect sense, I just extrapolated it for you.

*On a side note, does anyone know why Downtown Detroit developed where it did? Most cities that are along coastline usually spring up around a river that empties into the larger body of water (lakes for the Midwest). Detroit is super close the the River Rouge, so it has always puzzled me why it didn't develop more rapidly around that spot. To me, this is one of the unavoidable flaws that was put on Detroit from the beginning.

The story goes that French settlers picked the narrowest point of the Detroit river. Partly due to militaristic and trading reasons. The River Rouge area was actually pretty swampy and not all that good for development (and/or farming).

I thought Belle Isle would have a been a cool spot for downtown. Something like a mini-Manhattan.

[LMich]

Yeah, the location was picked between it was the narrowest part of the river, meaning it was much easier to control movement/trade along the river.

BTW, the many of the spokes had their origins in old Native American trails.

Speaking of trade, the New International Trade Crossing has passed a major hurdle with the defeat of Matty Moroun's "Let the People Decide" ballot initiative. The next step is for President Obama to sign construction permits:

Ottawa’s plan for bridge to Detroit on track after Michigan defeats proposal

Greg Keenan | The Globe & Mail

November 6, 2012

The Canadian government’s plan to build and pay for a new bridge across the Detroit River cleared a hurdle when Michigan voters effectively put their stamp of approval on it Tuesday.

Michiganders defeated a proposal that would have amended the state’s constitution to require a statewide vote before any government money is spent to construct, finance, buy land or promote a new international bridge or tunnel. With almost all precincts reporting, the vote was 60 per cent against.

The proposal, sponsored and financed by Manuel (Matty) Moroun, who owns the existing Ambassador Bridge, was aimed directly at putting up obstacles to Ottawa’s estimated $4-billion New International Trade Crossing. The federal government has offered to pay for the entire project – covering Michigan’s $550-million cost – a development that would end Mr. Moroun’s monopoly at the Detroit-Windsor, Ont., crossing.

Federal Transport Minister Denis Lebel was visibly thrilled by the results of Thursday’s vote, saying it now clears the way for the bridge to go ahead.

“We’re very, very happy with the results,” he said.

The minister said the next step is for President Barack Obama to approve a “presidential permit.” Until that happens, Mr. Lebel said he can’t provide a clear timeline as to when the bridge will be built.

...

Huge, huge economic development project for Michigan and Ontario.

[LMich]

This is great to hear:

Detroit mansions divided to welcome renters

By Serena Maria Johnson | The Detroit News

November 9, 2012

Detroit — A Victorian-style home in the city's Brush Park Historic District is being saved from ruin to address the rental squeeze near downtown, and several more conversions could be on the way.

The neighborhood's newest development, called The Edmund, is a renovation of the three-story Lucien Moore House, built in 1885 and named after the 19th-century lumber baron.

The city of Detroit is impressed enough with the conversion of the 11,000-square-foot home into a six-unit rental house with three newly built townhome apartments on the property that it wants to renovate some of its other historic houses in the area.

"Our hope is to replicate what took place at The Edmund at some of our properties," said Karla Henderson, director of the city's planning and facilities department, about four historic homes that Detroit owns on Alfred Street.

Turning large older dwellings into apartments is a fledgling trend as developers look outside the crammed Midtown and downtown neighborhoods to satisfy a growing hunger among young professionals to live in Detroit.

...

Detroit now owns or is in the process of buying back more than 150 properties in Brush Park, a vast majority of them vacant lots, Henderson said.

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