Donovan Building to be Demolished

[wolverine]

There is nothing left inside. Some friends who shall remain nameless here at U of M apparently went prior to the demolition and found nothing inside.

[kgourlay]

Here's some more pics from earlier last night, as the crew was working. No time to waste with silly things like dust abatement or buying reflective vests for your traffic control crew.

Here is my album of pics from the day including a few from the auto show as well as the demolition crew. No particular organization or cleanup, just a dump off my camera.

And my favorite:

A large wall section had just collapsed, spewing dust and debris all over Woodward. Points of note: all those people standing in the street are supposed to be directing traffic. Unfortunately they don't have any markings that indicate them as official in any way, nor are they wearing anything that could be considered high-visibility. Embarrassingly, none of them know how to direct traffic either. I can't blame the cars for not knowing what to do. Note the red car about to make a left turn (actually doing what the crew was trying to get him to do) and the oncoming car swerving almost on to the sidewalk to go straight through (didn't notice that the crew intended him to stop south of the building) and avoid getting hit by falling brick or people driving on the wrong side of the street.

[Michi]

I have to echo Allan's thoughts on the Donovan Bldg. Look at what has happened to the United Artists. It has a nice warm blanket on it asking someone to adopt it. So what if it is abandoned? The Donovan is existing infrastructure that is (to an extent) invaluable and has a heritage attached to it. I get the gut feeling that we have a tenancy to just neglectfully act on a whim when it comes to these things. I mean seriously, is it THAT necessary to tear this building down...and moreso in the timeframe it is being done in? No. It's silly.

[wolverine]

I've taken a photo of Detroit in the 80's and marked areas of demolition. It's quite amazing how many large buildings have been lost. You can see how much worse Woodward will be (heightwise) without these two structures.

[Zissou]

Thats definitely an eye opener.

[Michi]

Wow. Utmost respect for the people who stuck it out in the 80s. I doubt I could have done it.

Looks like Woodwar lost everything immediately adjacent (north) of the freeway. I'd like to see that same photo just before "the turning point".

[Jin Kim]

I'm stunned by how much of Brush Park was already empty in the 80's.

[RustTown]

1980's Detroit was, indeed, a very bleak time for the city. Unfortunately, many people still think of Detroit as it was in the 80's which just isn't true for almost every part of the city. It's kind of funny how when you're a kid everything looks so much better. I seriously thought as a little kid that everything I was living in was normal, rows-and-rows of abandoned homes, near constant gunfire at night, and all. lol What I do remember being more vibrant and put together then instead of now is the East Riverfront and Belle Isle. Hopefully, this will be the time for them to return to what they once were.

[wolverine]

Quite an observation LMich. I can relate to that so much that I'm starting another thread on our thoughts of city living.

[andrew.w]

I've taken a photo of Detroit in the 80's and marked areas of demolition. It's quite amazing how many large buildings have been lost. You can see how much worse Woodward will be (heightwise) without these two structures.

Thanks for posting this picture, not really for it's original intent but so that I could see where some of the Brush Park structures in photographs were once located.

Also, Allan, the Livingston House obviously was moved as it is behind the Bonstelle Theater in the picture.

(Sorry for re-posting the big picture again - I guess I'll leave it there for reference)

[rbdetsport]

Notice that was when Park Avenue still had its bridge. But really think..... Look how bad it was then and think of Detroit now. It seems so much better now. What would you take, a dead city or a vibrant one with less of it original infrastructure?

[andrew.w]

Notice that was when Park Avenue still had its bridge. But really think..... Look how bad it was then and think of Detroit now. It seems so much better now. What would you take, a dead city or a vibrant one with less of it original infrastructure?

Why was the bridge removed? There hasn't been any development that would block its use like at Comerica Park.

[rbdetsport]

Its sad looking at this picture, but it is a big wake up call. The city is just so dark. Even the buildings look old and rundown, the buildings that now look so beautiful.

[RustTown]

I can't help but think how a little thing like good landscapping could do for the look of the area. That aerial is old, but the landscapping (or lack there of) still looks the same. There are trees in what used to be yards, but there is no trees linning Woodward. There is no method to the madness. Many would be surprised at how much the look of an area can change how people treat it.

[Jin Kim]

What would you take, a dead city or a vibrant one with less of it original infrastructure?

Well if vibrant meant better infrastructure if not original, I'd take the later. Just as I could do without broken brick paved streets like Michigan Ave. if it meant getting a reasonably maintained concrete/asphalt paved street, I could do without some of the ruins of the city if it meant getting well kept functional buildings that will draw people into the city.

[Allan]

Does anyone know exactly when the Detroiter Hotel was pulled down? I always assumed it was taken down in the 1960s, but I see that it is still there in the aerial. I'd sure rather have a restored Detroiter than those townhouses that we ended up with.

[wolverine]

I thought it was demoed in the early 90's. For some reason I vaguely remember it, when going to the Fox Theater when I was young.

[detroitfan]

Yeah, the townhouses are a poor replacement it was demolished in Feb. 1996.

[Ramcharger]

The Detroiter Hotel, later Carmel Hall, was imploded on March 2, 1996.

Carmel Hall Implosion

[Allan]

Thanks guys!

I have blueprints to the Detroiter Hotel/Carmel Hall somewhere. I suppose we could buy out the townhouses and build it back.

[Ramcharger]

My great grandmother was actually a resident of Carmel Hall for a few years prior to her death in 1959. I vaguely remember visiting her there. I must have only been 7 or 8 years old and what really made an impression on me was how

[andrew.w]

That's the ten or so story building on Woodward across from the the empty lots next to Sander's right?

[Allan]

Yep.

[wolverine]

Has anyone been to the clickandpark site and the sbxl site? Neither mention the Donovan or Statler sites as being places for parking, not even for reserved or premium spaces! So basically they all went down for nothing? God, I hate this corrupt city gov't. more than ever.

[andrew.w]

Has anyone been to the clickandpark site and the sbxl site? Neither mention the Donovan or Statler sites as being places for parking, not even for reserved or premium spaces! So basically they all went down for nothing? God, I hate this corrupt city gov't. more than ever.

I thought that demolishing a good building for super bowl parking is a poor reason to begin with, especially not salvaging more of the building in the interest of time (in reference to today's DetroitFunk)

Yep.

Why is the hotel pictured on top five floors taller than the one on the bottom?

edit: let me add especially since the 1980s picture shows a building that is only as tall as the hotel as pictured on the bottom postcard. I can see the front section being shortened for street widening but I wouldn't expect height to be added then later removed.