DETROIT | Development & Construction: Motown Lowdown

[DetroitSky]

Originally Posted by seabee1526

I thought the city Target was going into the Cunningham Drugs buildings Griswold frontage with residential built above it.

Is that true? Where did you hear that?

Don’t forget to source photos!

[DetroitMan]

Developer tests the market with 23 new home sites near Indian Village

Among the first new speculative homes built at scale in Detroit in decades, sales are underway at a new-build development on the city’s east side.

Detroit-based multi-family apartment developer Greatwater Opportunity Capital LLC is now venturing into the for-sale side of the real estate business with a new project one block east of the historic Indian Village neighborhood.With two homes already pending at full asking price, one currently listed and two more under construction likely to be ready for sale by early summer, the developers have a total of 23 home sites along Fischer Street between Kercheval Avenue and St. Paul Street.

The developers acknowledge that the project — estimated at an $8 million-$10 million investment should all 23 houses be built — is something of a market-tester, but is also designed to be replicable around the city, which has ample amounts of vacant land.

“We didn’t know. It was definitely an act of faith,” said Matt Temkin, a managing member and co-founder of Greatwater, when asked about the demand expectations for the new homes. “The neighborhood is great. The goal was to just make (the product) great.” The current footprint of the project sits along Fischer Street in the East Village neighborhood just outside the Indian Village historic district, home to stately, century-old mansions and the occasional new build.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-e...indian-village

[DetroitMan]

Controversial landlord unloads large abandoned Corktown property

Controversial Detroit landlord Dennis Kefallinos has sold the abandoned former Southwest Detroit Hospital.

The $6.5 million sale took place March 15, according to city property records. The seller was Kefallinos’s 20th Street Development Property LLC and the buyer was an entity called 402310 Holdings LLC. Business incorporation documents for the purchasing entity do not reveal who is behind it, although city property records list the taxpayer address as a home owned by Edward Siegel, a former owner of the Urban Bean Co. coffee shop (now called Spkrbox) in the Capitol Park neighborhood.

Plans for the hospital and its property, which is about 250,000 square feet on close to 5.6 acres at Michigan Avenue and 20th Street on the Corktown neighborhood’s western-most edge, are not known. The hospital has been vacant for nearly two decades.

On Thursday afternoon, Siegel verified he bought the old hospital but wouldn’t discuss “the project, partners or clients” for the site, which has attracted intrigue the last few years. That's in part because of its location just a few blocks west of the soon-to-reopen redeveloped Michigan Central Station owned by Ford Motor Co., and a longstanding — now deteriorated — sign Kefallinos installed promising a mixed-use redevelopment in 2020 that never came.

An email was sent to Kefallinos seeking comment on Thursday and a voicemail was left with one of his deputies as well.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-e...sold-new-owner

[Velvet_Highground]

Thank god, I’m not sure of the future of the building as it’s been left open & I have no idea of the structural integrity. If it’s solid it would make for a good residential and or mixed use space.

The identity of the new owner is confusing it seems to be a project out of his league, perhaps there is another backer or silent partner. I’ll be watching to see what becomes of this highly visible abandoned mid-rise.

[DetroitSky]

New four-story apartment complex for seniors planned for Detroit's Cass Corridor

A nonprofit Detroit neighborhood development corporation is looking to build a four-story, 49-unit apartment complex in the Cass Corridor for low-income seniors.

The building would be situated on what is now vacant land between 440 and 460 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., next door to the King's Arms Hotel rooming house.

The developer, the Cass Corridor Neighborhood Development Corp., first proposed the project about three years ago, but recently resubmitted revised plans to city planners.

[DetroitMan]

DNR working with private companies to restore, fund Belle Isle Boat House

Concern about the fate of the Belle Isle Boat House has resurfaced after an annual report presentation on Belle Isle during a Detroit City Council meeting on Tuesday.

The boathouse, built in 1902 and used to house the Detroit Rowing Club, has stood dilapidated and empty since August 2022, when sections of the ceiling, floor, and exterior stucco collapsed. After architects estimated the cost of restoration efforts at around $54 million, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which acquired the boathouse when it acquired Belle Isle in 2014, has searched for solution after solution to make use of its limited funding.

The DNR has toyed with the idea of demolition, and although it's still not off the table, they are now attempting to partner with a private company to save the building and possibly reimagine the boathouse. "We did send out a public survey to ask folks what they would like to see, and obviously, the majority of the public's sentiment was to save it. ... But that doesn't mean that the funding is there to do so," said Thomas Bissett, the urban district supervisor for the parks and recreation division of the Michigan DNR. "I don't think that (the DNR) wants to demolish it ... What we want is that if it's something that's going to be restored, for it be restored appropriately but then also for it to be funded in the future." Earlier this year, the DNR began accepting proposals from private companies to redevelop the boathouse, hoping for proposals from people with backgrounds in development and historical rehabilitation with financial backing to submit a viable proposal. By the March 31 deadline, the DNR had received five letters of intent, three of which were selected to move forward in the process. They now have until July 31 to submit a formal proposal to the DNR.
"At that point, we would sit down and review them and see if any of them are viable, as far as being able to first fund it but continue to operate it through their plan," said Bissett. "It'd be great to fix it, but it has to fund the facility, and most importantly we want a key aspect of that to remain open to the public. The last thing we want is it to be a building on Belle Isle that's not open to the public.

"We can do lots of improvements, but if we restore the building so it just sits there, that doesn't make any sense for the public."

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...t/73703543007/

[Doc_Love]

East or Little Village has gotten some coverage lately from the Charles McGee & Tony Hawk designed park/skate park. To the renovation of the church & more. Of special note award winning local artist Charles McGee’s last work turned out to be the collaboration with Tony Hawk on the park & skatepark.

Yet its location near Pawabic Pottery and Cadillac Blvd (the grand old street that ended at the water works park gates) is coming along to be quite the incredible project. Cadillac Blvd has had a decent amount of investment in it recently & rightfully so it’s not another Indian Village in architectural terms though it’s opulent in its own way.

Unfortunately perhaps a 1/3 of the original homes are no more and 1/5 to 1/10 (depending on location) are in need of renovation not to be shiny but to prevent ingress of water and the structural integrity issues that will cause. The Library Collective offers an anchor point for this unique community in an of the lower east side that has become more green than urban in spots. While bordering the Jefferson Ave commercial district & famous neighborhoods such as the Berry Subdivision as well as high rise of the Gold Coast.

Little Village: The Next Big Thing In Detroit

Forbes
Chadd Scott


LIBRARY STREET COLLECTIVE

Little Village in Detroit with the Shepherd in
background opening May 18. 2024.


A staunch group of holdouts who stuck by the city through its decades as a national punchline for urban decay and crime, when it was broke and busted, have done the hardest work. Have seen the hardest times.

Today, their refusal to accept that Detroit was hopeless, makes it one of the most exciting cities in America. That’s right.

Husband and wife Anthony and JJ Curis were two of the holdouts.

They’ve poured into Detroit for decades. Easiest to recognize are their Library Street Collective art gallery and The Belt, a rehabbed alleyway the gallery calls home also housing hip restaurants and nightclubs. Then there’s the public art and murals they’ve populated the city with.

Beyond public view, thousands of hours collaborating, planning, arm twisting, petitioning, meeting, pulling, pushing, advocating, fundraising and doing the uncelebrated work of trying to turn a city around.

Their efforts–and those of Detroit’s other unbreakable champions–initially focused on downtown. Having achieved one of the most amazing urban comeback stories ever told there, emphasis has now shifted to the neighborhoods.

On May 18, 2024, the Curises debut their most ambitious project to date, Little Village, a new cultural corridor in the East Village neighborhood. Focused on art, architecture, the landscape, and access to the waterfront, Little Village is anchored by the Shepherd, the former Good Shepherd originally built in 1911.

“I fell in love with the idea that the history of this neighborhood and how it was developed, a lot of that was done around this church,” Anthony Curis told Forbes.com. “Maybe we could find a way to help generate things in this neighborhood around the church in a similar way.”

The Shepherd has been transformed into a cultural arts center, keeping the integrity of the original architecture intact.

“My wife and I are preservationists at heart, we value history and architecture and preservation in general,” Curis said. “Our own home, similarly, we went through a very lengthy restoration and preservation then put that home on the federal historic registry, which is something we also intend on doing with this space.”




Two new gallery spaces have been added to the central nave and a transept. The other transept houses the Little Village Library, curated by Asmaa Walton, founder of Detroit’s Black Art Library, making artist monographs, exhibition catalogs and research materials centered around artists of color who have made contributions to the arts in Michigan publicly accessible.

The Shepherd will also host live performances and larger installations throughout the central crossing, apse, and a mezzanine above the main gallery.

Anthony Curis is a real estate developer. JJ Curis’ background is in finance. The pair could have focused their revitalization efforts in a hundred different and necessary directions around the city. Why arts and culture?

When we met, we had shared appreciation of the arts, and it was something that became passionate for us, traveling and collecting and seeing how art has impacted communities,” Anthony Curis said. “It really snowballed. (Library [/B]
Street Collective) was never really meant to be a business. It was our way of challenging each other on how we could use the gallery as a vehicle for change which is why we've always been so focused on public projects, urban planning, and public spaces, things outside of the brick and mortar.”

Charles McGee

Charles McGee, 'Play Patterns II,' 2011. Mixed media collage on enamel 120 x 240 in 304.8 x 609.6 cm.

Courtesy of the Charles McGee Estate and Library Street Collective.

Adjacent to the Shepherd is the Charles McGee Legacy Park.

“In my opinion, Charles is the most important artist in the last century in the city of Detroit,” Anthony Curis said. “His impact on this community, the work he's done both in the studio and public spaces, his focus on staying in Detroit when, as an artist at that time, it was near impossible. Charles stuck it through and lived his entire life here and was passionate about that.”

The sculpture garden features three large-scale pieces by McGee (1942–2021) and debuts the artist’s first figurative work in public sculpture. McGee completed the designs for Legacy Park prior to his passing in 2021.

…..

To further honor McGee, in collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, the inaugural exhibition at the Shepherd will be an expansive survey of his work. “Charles McGee: Time is Now” can be seen May 18 to July 20, 2024. MOCAD and Library Street Collective will present a sister exhibition at MOCAD, titled “Kinship: The Legacy of Gallery 7,” from June 28 to September 23, 2024.

LANTERN building south facade artist rendering. Oma and Luxigon.

…..

World renowned artist McArthur Binion oversaw elements of the artistic design. Binion’s foundation, Modern Ancient Brown, occupies part of the third floor of the former church rectory now known as ALEO. Modern Ancient Brown supports the intersection between the visual and literary arts in Detroit and sponsors two artist residency programs–one of which is facilitated out of ALEO.

A boutique bed & breakfast will also open on ALEO’s second floor with the first floor of the rectory centered around communal spaces for events and social programming.

Located directly behind the church and adjacent to the skatepark is BridgeHouse.

Two vacant residential houses have been converted into four small commercial spaces intended for culinary uses. Both houses have been restored and are now encapsulated within a two-story deck providing outdoor space and viewing opportunities into the skatepark, grounds, and stage intimate performances.

BridgeHouse includes a new restaurant by James Beard Award-winning pastry chef Warda Bouguettaya, who will exclusively provide breakfast for the ALEO guests.

The former garage of the Shepherd has been transformed into a cocktail bar, Father Forgive Me.

…..

A few blocks away from the Shepherd, the Curises are transforming a former commercial bakery and warehouse building, now vacant, into a mixed-use arts hub which will serve as headquarters for two local arts non-profits, Signal-Return and PASC (Progressive Arts Studio Collective).

Named the LANTERN, the building will include 5,300-square-feet of affordable artist studio spaces, and nearly 4,000-square-feet of creative retail–all connected by a 2,000 square foot outdoor courtyard imagined as an accessible community space and open-air lobby.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/chaddsc...h=64d2ec8862ea



Stanton Yards from its current renderings looks like a slice of what we were originally so excited about the Ralph C Wilson Centennial Park. A slice of nature as it was along the Straits of Detroit before urbanization.

The White Pines naturally along the waters edge (though the coastline was a mixed forest likely heavier with Oak, Elm, Beech & Chestnut) conifers take the longest to regrow after an area returns to nature. Nothing says Great Lakes coast quite like White Pines.

SO – IL, OSD, and Library Street Collective unveil Stanton Yards, a new arts venue in Little Village, Detroit

The Architect’s Newspaper
Daniel Roche

In Detroit’s Little Village, a historic neighborhood along the Detroit River, SO – IL is designing a new arts campus together with Office of Strategy + Design (OSD) and Library Street Collective, a Detroit-based cultural agency founded in 2012.

OSD is responsible for the project’s master plan, formally called Stanton Yards. The buildings by SO – IL will deliver 42,000 square feet of space for arts and culture on a 13-acre site that will double as both cultural venue and active marina. The waterfront will be fitted with amenities for concerts, play areas, and public art installations, and have 85 active boat slips.

The forthcoming project by SO – IL represents the latest addition to Little Village, a multisite arts neighborhood that features new projects by Peterson Rich Office (PRO), the Shepherd, and OMA. “We wanted to celebrate the site’s industrial character, while clearly demonstrating its renewed purpose and identity,” SO – IL’s Florian Idenburg said.

The project will adaptively reuse four industrial buildings, and maintain unique features like sawtooth roofs.

OSD’s master plan features one new ground-up building; it will also convert four industrial buildings of mixed sizes into a cohesive multi-use arts campus. The future interior spaces will have room for art-making, workshops, educational programming, performances, galleries, and recreational uses. The overall goal is to build a “porous space in which programs exist in dialogue with the city and one another,” SO – IL offered.

New ground-up building by OSD

The design approach places emphasis on the adaptive reuse of existing materials on site at the four buildings. Swaths of metal siding will be replaced with translucent polycarbonate to fill spaces with natural light. Additional windows and skylights will be added to amplify a sense of openness. The overall material palette will have polished metal, hammered concrete, and layered brick to create familiar yet contrasting textures.

The Detroit project builds on SO – IL’s track record of successfully converting industrial buildings into cultural milieus. Previously, the New York office completed Amant in Brooklyn and Site Verrier in Meisenthal, France.

In signature SO – IL fashion, the future project in Detroit uses mesh: The design proffers a distinctive sloped canopy of the netted material that stretches over an entry plaza on Jefferson Avenue. This is meant to give the site a signature and new public identity.

The street-facing structures will be strategically perforated for public access to draw in visitors to the lush courtyard at the site’s core. The courtyard itself will act as the “beating heart of the campus, supporting community events, art installations, and leisure activities,”

https://www.archpaper.com/2024/05/so...detroit/?amp=1

[seabee1526]

https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/...adium-project/

Detroit City Football Club getting a new Pitch in "The Cork" at old hospital site

[Doc_Love]

While an ignominious end to a historic and groundbreaking institution Detroit Southwest Hospital being the first to accredit black doctors and nurses. Though it’s been only a matter of time since the bankruptcies in the 90’s that the clock has been ticking according to rumors about the building needing an overhaul.

If I remember the scuttlebutt from DetroitYes the quality of construction wasn’t the greatest with the financial situation of the early 70’s it wouldn’t surprise me.

It’s a difficult site to develop at the corner of Michigan & 20th hemmed in by the 75-96 interchange, there’s also an industrial facility across the street. Access is more limited than usual as the Fisher service drive ends at the railroad tracks while 20th provides a connection to Hubbard - Richard neighborhood. Which itself has limited access points after the Ambassador Bridge port of entry expansion & connection to the interstates.

I’ll be keeping my eye on this project it’s a good western anchor for Corktown & I doubt there will be a lack of interest in the local communities. With a western anchor to Michigan Ave in Corktown & Michigan Central’s opening to the public perhaps we may renewed interest in the CPA Building sometime soon.



Group of 500 residents calls for halt to I-375 project

Sarah Rahal
The Detroit News

Detroit — A group of about 500 residents is calling for state leaders and developers to reconsider the Interstate 375 "reconnecting communities" project that would convert the Detroit freeway into a street-level six-lane boulevard, saying they worry about a redesign affecting quality of life and economic vitality of the area.

The group, in a letter sent to Mayor Mike Duggan and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday, said it was concerned about the residential integrity of Detroit's east side, the economic vitality of its neighborhoods and restoring the legacy of Black Bottom and Paradise Valley, which were removed due to the interstate project six decades ago.

The letter said they believe the proposal by Michigan's Department of Transportation would "actively disconnect our community, and threaten decades of our neighborhood's stability." They urged leaders to halt the project until a "more legitimate process can be developed."

Residents told The Detroit News that MDOT is misleading in its characterization of the project, saying it would remedy past wrongs, but they said they fear a more industrial future with the project. They requested that the city’s framework for the corridor be completed before any further work on the road design or awards of building and design contracts are made. It alleges that MDOT's proposal for a six-lane boulevard will not be safe or vibrant as presented in 2022.

MDOT said it has held more than 50 outreach sessions to collect input from the community over the last year. Its most recent Local Advisory Committee meeting was held May 1, and there is a public meeting in June.

"Those meetings include our Local Advisory Committee, Government Advisory Committee, public meetings and community stakeholder groups," according to a statement from spokesman Rob Morosi. "The revisions we’ve made to the road design are directly related to the valuable feedback we received. When the public said they were concerned with the safety of a nine-lane intersection we listened, collecting and reviewing traffic counts, and modified the size of the road."

I know there’s a rush to spend the COVID recovery funds before they run out hence all the construction everywhere but this should be MDOT priority #1. An additional 3 turn lanes on a 6 lane boulevard at Lafayette I believe goes against the most basic theme of the plan.




Detroiters Weigh in on MDOT’s I-375 Reconnecting Communities Project

During urban renewal, I-375 wiped out a thriving Black community. Now the state plans to replace it, but many Detroiters are dissatisfied — and want the project to start over with their voices at its center.

Hour Detroit
By Sam Corey
February 15, 2024

MDOT has been developing plans to replace I-375 since at least 2014, when it conducted a planning study with several local partnering agencies to inquire about alternative designs for what is now a spur of I-75 into downtown Detroit. But the plans gained wider attention over one year ago when U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg came to Detroit to announce his agency’s delivery of $104.6 million for the project. It was then that Buttigieg said the project would be part of a “reparative process,” giving a nod to those who lived in Black Bottom and Paradise Valley. The city of Detroit echoed a similar sentiment that day.

But the leader of the project, MDOT, has never used such language, saying only that the agency will “pay tribute” to Black Bottom and Paradise Valley residents. It claims that 30 acres of land will be created by the highway’s removal and that community enhancement projects, which haven’t yet been detailed, will be funded.

Instead, MDOT has focused primarily on promoting safe, multimodal travel for cyclists, pedestrians, and large vehicles. Rob Morosi, MDOT’s communications specialist for the metro region, says his agency is doing everything it can to provide a safer flow of traffic for all those who will use the new road.

“And while some may feel that the boulevard is not the right option to connect neighborhoods on the east side to the central business district, we are diligently providing safe options for all modes of transportation through our design,” he wrote in an email to Hour Detroit.

Although some are displeased with its outreach efforts, MDOT has been holding regular community input meetings on the I-375 project for the past year. Leslie Love, MDOT metro region assistant deputy director, says that in August 2023, she met an 80-year-old woman and former Black Bottom resident at one of the project’s open meetings. She calls that woman, and attendees like her, “advisers” for the project.

“We are not interested in repeating negative history, and we strive, in this project, to be engaged in community,” Love says.

The city hasn’t decided on a final design the group representing the concerned residents has voiced that a 6 lane boulevard

[animatedmartian]

I'm not sure if I'm understanding the residents' concerns here. Reducing the road from 9 to 6 lanes is a positive move. Even then it still seems a bit too wide, imo.

It's a bit confusing because having a sunken freeway in the area is about as destructive as you can get for a neighborhood. The letter doesn't even mention anything specifically problematic with the current proposal.

The most interesting issue I could find was this:

In fact, the project will result in an uglier, less safe, less economically viable, less inclusive city fabric — one that would even delay medical services in an area with a large senior population, including in life-threatening emergencies. MDOT has yet to meaningfully address these concerns.

Certainly traffic patterns will change but isn't that kind of the point? Having too much car traffic in a dense urban area is kind of what makes these areas less pedestrian friendly and connected.

I kinda want to chalk this up to NIMBYs who don't want to see change because they're just used to the freeway being there and/or businesses that don't want to deal with construction interruptions and also probably prefer the easier(by like a quarter of a mile) freeway access.

[DetroitSky]

I'm shocked no one has posted this outstanding news:

Detroit experiences population surge after decades of decline

DETROIT – There is a lot of positive momentum around Detroit. The city’s population surge is now catching the country’s attention.
Data regarding Detroit’s population growth is making national, even international, headlines this week.
“With the population boom that’s coming now, it’s making everybody feel more happy,” said Demetrius Martin while doing yard work in his Ravendale neighborhood on Detroit’s east side. “I’m seeing people moving in. It’s a house down the street that’s like $250,000 in this neighborhood, and it’s like, whoa, dang.”
The U.S. Census Bureau has been crunching the numbers. It estimates about 631,366 people called Detroit home in 2022. One year later, the city’s population grew to 633,218 residents.

[deja vu]

That's great news!

[vetteking]

Originally Posted by DetroitSky

I'm shocked no one has posted this outstanding news:

Detroit experiences population surge after decades of decline

That’s awesome for your community, there’s hope for my city! In Gods divine timing I always say!

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by DetroitSky

I'm shocked no one has posted this outstanding news:

Detroit experiences population surge after decades of decline

I'm actually not surprised contrary to popular opinion.

Detroit came pretty close to y-o-y positive growth from 1998 to 1999. So I've since figured that once demolitions taper off, the economy remains stable, and there's continued growth in new housing (most of it likely downtown), Detroit can easily see some modest gains y-o-y. It's just a matter of how sustainable the growth can be, I think.

Good news, nonetheless, but I'm ready to see neighborhoods filled again.

[uaarkson]

That is major, historic news. It has been nearly 70 years since Detroit last reported YOY population growth.

[Doc_Love]

Duggan was pointing to an over all increase in gas and electric hookups when he predicted growth in the 2020 census. The pandemic unfortunately touched every one and every family lost someone.

Still great news whether it’s just official recognition of what’s been happening or it took longer than we thought. It’s something to celebrate, one of those major milestone facts that shows the city is on the rise

[DetroitMan]

New sports-community complex aims to lift up Detroit neighborhood

A new multi-purpose recreation facility and park being built by a nonprofit in a west-side Detroit neighborhood intends to redefine community space and spread hope.

The Merit Park project broke ground Friday at 10123 Grand River Ave. near I-96 and Livernois. The project is being led by David Merritt, co-founder and board chair of Give Merit, the nonprofit arm of Merit Goodness. Merritt is also a former University of Michigan basketball player from 2006-09. The facility will be home to an NBA regulation basketball court, a turf field with indoor bleacher seating for up to 300 people and a rock climbing wall. Other physical activity features include a slash pad, 31.3-yard dash and outdoor obstacle course.

Opportunities for professional advancement include a podcast room and a training kitchen. Additionally, Merit Park will offer retail space, restaurants and coffee shops.

Construction of the park is estimated to take a year and it is expected to open in summer 2025. Once completed, the 57,500-square-foot facility is planned to be a “holistic life skills and fitness training center” open to the community and focusing on advancing the lives of Detroit youth. Merit Park will include a variety of resources that support health and expand educational opportunities to youth and families in Detroit, Merritt said. The nonprofit will own the park and manage all programming there. Merritt said the $15 million Merit Park project has been more than seven years in the making. More than $10 million for the project has been raised from organizations including the Kresge Foundation, Ally Bank, the Mullick Foundation and the state, according to a news release.

The project fulfills multiple needs for the community, Merritt said, noting the area currently doesn’t have any city or neighborhood parks.

“We have about 7,000 young people under the age of 19 within the 48204 ZIP code without much to do. Very few spaces for young people to safely play, but also just very few places for the community as a whole to come together and to build community to build relationships,” Merritt told Crain’s.
Two dilapidated buildings on the property that sat vacant for about 40 years were demolished for the project. The land, now solely owned by Give Merit, was owned by a variety of private owners. The first piece of the land for the project was donated by Merritt’s parents who started Straight Gate International Church, across from the planned park.

Merritt would not disclose financial details of the land purchases.

“We're hoping to create a model for other Black communities throughout the city and throughout the country. How we can take spaces that are underutilized, dilapidated, and to transform those spaces, again, into beacons of hope for the community,” Merritt said. “Merit Park is another platform that we are creating for young people in the city of Detroit to create their own future.”

However, the Merit Park project is not limited to youth and intends to be a space that cultivates community.

“I’ve lived in this neighborhood since I was a teenager — over 50 years. I was raised here, I raised my daughter here, and now she is raising my grandson here. There is currently absolutely nothing in the neighborhood for any type of activity for people, young or old,” neighborhood resident Vanessa Bennett said in the release.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/nonpro...t-neighborhood

[DetroitMan]

Detroit planners set stage for future new uses at RenCen tower

City planners have taken a step toward allowing Renaissance Center Tower 600 to be used for more than just office space.

With the Detroit Planning Commission’s approval on Thursday night, an entity connected to Farmington Hills-based Friedman Real Estate, which owns the 336,000-square-foot Tower 600 of the seven-building complex, could add uses like hotel, multifamily housing, restaurants, retail or others.

The Detroit City Council needs to sign off on the zoning change, as well. There is no set plan for the tower and future users as of yet, Planning Commission staff said. Commission documents say it’s only about 10% occupied after Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan vacated 165,000 square feet — roughly half — of the building in February to consolidate into Tower 500 next door. An email was sent to a spokesperson for Friedman Real Estate as well as an executive there seeking comment Friday morning.

It’s the latest change for the Renaissance Center in the last six months.
First, Friedman, through a network of affiliates, purchased the 500 and 600 towers from a New Jersey-based publicly traded utility company in December, spending an estimated $15 million on the buildings and land, plus what an executive said was $10 million to $15 million to retain BCBSM and consolidate employees into the 500 Tower. The health insurer signed a long-term lease there.

Friedman then quietly flipped the leased 500 Tower to an entity called KPI 500 Tower LLC, connected to Florida-based Kawa Private Investments in a deal estimated at $30.4 million. The LLC is registered at Kawa's Florida address and lists its deputy CEO on its business incorporation documents.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-e...s-rencen-tower

[gratiotfaced]

I honestly wasn't sure the city would see any growth this decade, but definitely didn't expect so soon into it.

Even then, I assumed any growth at all would be a marginal +50 or +175 kind of number, not almost +2,000!

Even then, I would never have expected Detroit to climb population rankings, let alone jump up several spots!

This is probably the biggest and best headline for the city since emerging from bankruptcy, maybe longer. Detroit has never grown in my lifetime or my parents' lifetimes. It's hard to overstate how significant and monumental this is.

The turnaround for this city and the speed at which it has happened honestly makes me a little misty eyed, lol. This headline was unimaginable ten years ago. So proud of Detroit. I hope to see a future where Detroit is so vibrant and thriving that people are shocked to learn the city used to be so troubled and empty, though I know that's many decades away.

[Doc_Love]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

I'm not sure if I'm understanding the residents' concerns here. Reducing the road from 9 to 6 lanes is a positive move. Even then it still seems a bit too wide, imo.

It's a bit confusing because having a sunken freeway in the area is about as destructive as you can get for a neighborhood. The letter doesn't even mention anything specifically problematic with the current proposal.

The most interesting issue I could find was this:



Certainly traffic patterns will change but isn't that kind of the point? Having too much car traffic in a dense urban area is kind of what makes these areas less pedestrian friendly and connected.

I kinda want to chalk this up to NIMBYs who don't want to see change because they're just used to the freeway being there and/or businesses that don't want to deal with construction interruptions and also probably prefer the easier(by like a quarter of a mile) freeway access.

True there’s definitely NIMBYism the original complaint was Lafayette Park liked being disconnected from downtown, I think the anti removal crowd has gotten wise that it’s a good thing for the city. They’re trying to reframe it, 9 lanes at an intersection is too much but I thought The Detroit News was a little disingenuous by only showing that cut away not the whole project.

Personally I think it’s a great opportunity to fix the messy eastside of downtown but if there are people who want a real connection to Hastings of old. McNichols west of Livernois has a black owned and operated section of the commercial district that is being renovated.

Putting local black owned and operated businesses high up on the list open in any future developments would be a good way to honor the neighborhood’s heritage. As well as setting aside a percentage of housing for low income Detroiters. Imo I’m seeing a bit of NIMBY and a change in political tactics by complaining about walkability while the city hasn’t even signed off on a preferred choice.