DETROIT [3] City View from the 72nd Floor

[hkskyline]

I took a free tour of the Renaissance Center, which includes a visit to the Coach Insignia restaurant on the top floor. We walked around the circumference of the building just below the GM sign.

Here are some views from 72/F. Too bad we couldn't go one floor below so I could take better pictures right by the glass. Perhaps if I were dressed a bit better that day I could've stayed for dinner.

I notice a lot of spiders hanging outside along the windows. You can see them in a lot of the photos. I wonder how they can survive. It must be quite windy up there!

Belle Isle towards the east :

Towards the Ambassador Bridge to the west :

Downtown

[theSuburbs]

nice photos.

I was up there a long time ago.

[paletexan]

I see a lot more trees than I would have guessed to be downtown.

[hudkina]

That's actually Lafayette Park, just outside of downtown.

Downtown doesn't really have many trees.

[peaceloveunderstanding]

some of those photos are awesome. I especially like the one with the city in full view below. The architecture is outstanding (not the center but of the other buildings downtown).

[AlabamaGuy2007]

Those are some great views!!

[Nitro]

I'll never understand why Detroit wastes their riverfront property with crap like surface lots and vacant industrial sites. It hasn't changed a bit since I moved away 7 years ago.

[Jasoncw]

While that has been a parking lot for a while, that entire area is going to be the site of a big project. I don't know when construction will start.

http://www.rossetti.com/residential/river_east.html

[resourcefulidiot]

ur assumption that it hasnt changed one bit in 7 years couldnt be further from the truth. The empty rivertown warehouse district has been leveled...miles of riverwalk have been completed, 3-4 condominium projects have been secured on the spaces surrounding chene park and near the rencen with accompanying retail zone. The old cement cilos have been demolished, a new state park on the riverfront has opened, and the rivard plaza is under construction, along with the new port authority terminal to commence soon....and as far as I can see GR's riverfront still hasn't realized its potential either, which it will soon be doing as well

check ur facts

[Randy@Tacoma]

Check YOUR spelling...

[Michi]

Progress is being made, albeit slowly. We've been waiting on housing reports for River East for quite some time now. Not sure what is taking so long. The entertainment component of River East includes Rivard Plaza.

(Rivard Plaza is the light gray area on the far upper-right portion of the photo Nitro reposted)

[resourcefulidiot]

not that it really matters, but I didn't spell anything wrong absent some abbreviations and missing apostrophes on contractions

...and looking at my post now, it seems sorta hostile towards GR and their riverfront, but its not meant to be

[tampasteve]

Grat pics. I see that one was taken from (or above) the people mover. How did you like that? Is it convienient to use and go to the areas that you would like it to. It always amazes me that Detroit, being as large as it is, does not have any mass transit asside from buses and a small people mover loop DT. I know that the auto industry has a grip, but come one!

Steve

[GRDadof3]

While that has been a parking lot for a while, that entire area is going to be the site of a big project. I don't know when construction will start.

http://www.rossetti.com/residential/river_east.html

Interesting. My brother worked on a riverfront project when he did his architecture internship at Rossetti (or maybe Albert Kahn) when he was going to UofD back in the early 90's. I wonder if it's the same project resurrected? It seems like back then there was a proposed golf course as part of the project, which my brother thought was disgraceful for an urban riverfront setting like that.

Grand Rapids does have a big piece of riverfront land that is used by the city for utilities and public service buildings. It's horrible, so Detroit is not alone on that front.

[dtown]

wow, that plaza is going to look pretty nice.

[wolverine]

It always amazes me that Detroit, being as large as it is, does not have any mass transit asside from buses and a small people mover loop DT. I know that the auto industry has a grip, but come one!

Steve

Good observation. In fact, Detroit is one of the few, if only large city without a mass transit system (excluding busses). Such circumstances have really hurt Detroits urban environment. Freeways and parking lots have destoryed much of what once made the city so unique. I am not sure to any extent if a mass transit system will "save" Detroit, but I am sure it would improve it somewhat reducing reliance on the automobile across the region. I call much of Detroits new developments auto-dependent since a certain amount of parking is required in order to construct a new building or redevelop one. My hopes are that a new mass transit system would make living and working downtown easier which would help bring the city back to life.

Surprisingly the auto industry is in support of a mass transit system in Detroit, especially GM. To what extent General Motors would be funding a light rail system, I do not know. I unfortunately do not have access to that info. But we would not be seeing an extension of the people mover, rather a brand new system that would connect up to it at a hub. One of those points would probably be guess guess??....The renaissance center of course!

[RustTown]

Yeah, it's not GM trying to suppress it. It's that there is almost no regional partnerships on anything for many complicated reasons. GM was no more responsible from helping dismantling Detroit's street car system than it was anywhere else. They seem to get blamed soley for all of Detroit's mass transit ills, and that's just not the case.

Plus, there are many serious proposals for RiverEast (8-block area directly east of the RenCen being developed by GM), and the East Riverfont, the largest currently being Chene West:

And, RiverEast

[1ajs]

Yeah, it's not GM trying to suppress it. It's that there is almost no regional partnerships on anything for many complicated reasons. GM was no more responsible from helping dismantling Detroit's street car system than it was anywhere else. They seem to get blamed soley for all of Detroit's mass transit ills, and that's just not the case.

Plus, there are many serious proposals for RiverEast (8-block area directly east of the RenCen being developed by GM), and the East Riverfont, the largest currently being Chene West:

And, RiverEast

WOW good for detriot