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$150 million complex planned for downtown Detroit

DetroitMan

By DetroitMan
in Detroit

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wolverine Town

wolverine

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I was just going to say before reading the comments, I doubt this will have the bright colors, although what slight tint the glass does offer will really add to the variety of color on the skyline. I agree that's its design appears out of place, but something has to make a bold statement. I think I like this one.

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rbdetsport Burg

rbdetsport

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I like it a lot! It grew on me. The density around Campus Martius is going to be amazing with this built. I also doubt the color will be like that. I can't get an idea of what the third renderings really is. Anyone have any idea?

Also, since this project is still some time away, does anyone think that they could possibly add more floors to the towers if demand warrants it? Meaning, if downtown continues on a faster pace of redevelopment and the rental demand skyrockets.

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Jasoncw Hamlet

Jasoncw

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What design elements would be lost? :)

I don't think we have to worry about the building being too tall. I think that the building being as big as it is now is very impressive. I think if anything it would get scaled back. Although I think Campus Martius would be a good spot for a tall tower. It would be symbolic in a good way, and Campus Martius and Cadillac Square would give it some space to breathe (if a huge building needed to be built somewhere, better there than somewhere else, imo).

Can anyone find anything more about this architect or his firms? I've searched for his name, his firm's name, his firm's old name, and all I've found is stuff related to this project, and some pages from Pratt where he is a professor.

So it turns out that the building being curved is a direct response to the curvature of Campus Martius. I don't normally think of Campus Martius as having a lot of curves (its a rectangle with rounded corners but still a rectangle). But aside from that, the essence of Woodward's Detroit plan is the opposite of organic. I think that the Woodward Plan is something special and I like that he's drawing from that (I'm assuming he's looking at the Woodward Plan and not just the park), but I don't think what he sees is really there.

Another inspiration was Detroit's cars, which while they are curved, they are also still very axial. Even if that's thinking too literal, I still think that "Detroit->Cars->Swoops" is lame. And if this building is supposed to be looking towards the future, cars aren't the thing to look at (everyone talks about diversification). Some kind of high tech related thing could tie into Compuware, the IT offices that Quicken might develop at the Hudson's site, and the developments at TechTown, and I think something like that would be more appropriate.

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Michi Burg

Michi

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Agreed. The intention of the Campus Martius neighborhood is to have lower buildings surrounding the park to offer a more human scale atmosphere to the overall experience. Also, that way, we can still see the icons of the downtown skyline rising behind them. This project pretty much falls in line with that train of thought. I'm sure if there is more demand for Central Business District rental units, then more supply will be built to respond to the demand. It's not always easily recognizable, but downtown has a TON of empty lots in which to build dense developments on.

rbdetsport, the 3rd rendering is a perspective looking up the side of the building. If you look at the rendering above it, it would seem that it is trying to show what the side of the building looks like where the different angles coexist.

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Jasoncw Hamlet

Jasoncw

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I don't know anything, but it's probably just to finish off those sides of the tower, for aesthetic reasons. If they had an important function they'd probably show up more consistently in the renderings.

Does anyone know, back then did the architect really think that in the future, there would be more 40 story buildings next to it to it? Or was it just acceptable, because while they are visible, they are not the front facade? The building was one of the tallest in the city when it was built, and was "Barnum Tower", so they seemed to have imagined it as a tower, and not part of a 40 story street wall. Does anyone know?

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Allan Metropolis

Allan

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Yep, Louis Kamper's Real Estate Exchange Building was located two buildings west of Cadillac Tower. It was something like 18 or 20 stories, and covered most of the side of the Cadillac Tower, so it made sense to push the elevators against that wall. The Real Estate Exchange Building was pulled down in about 1977 or so to make way for a development that never happened. The city purchased the building for city offices, but then changed their minds and demolished it. I have a few news articles on the demolition at home, which I will dig up if I have time. I also have demolition photos, which I cannot post due to copyright issues, but they show the building before demolition began, the bulldozer hard at work midway through, and workers pulling down the last of the structural steel.

The Real Estate Exchange Building was similar to another Louis Kamper Building, the Hofmann Building, at 2539 Woodward Avenue. The Hofmann was an INCREDIBLE gothic-looking building that was constructed in 1924-1925. It stood just north of the Donovan/Sanders Buildings, on the southwest corner of Woodward & Sibley. It was 10 stories, with a terra cotta base, a red brick shaft, and a gothic terra cotta top, similar to that of the Real Estate Exchange. I've only seen two photos and a postcard of the building, unfortunately. It existed up until at least 1977...my guess would be that it was demolished sometime in the 1980s. It was badly mangled in the cornice chop of '58, when all of the unique gothic detail was stripped off, making it unrecognizable.

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Cliff19336 Unincorporated Area

Cliff19336

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Yep, Louis Kamper's Real Estate Exchange Building was located two buildings west of Cadillac Tower. It was something like 18 or 20 stories, and covered most of the side of the Cadillac Tower, so it made sense to push the elevators against that wall. The Real Estate Exchange Building was pulled down in about 1977 or so to make way for a development that never happened. The city purchased the building for city offices, but then changed their minds and demolished it. I have a few news articles on the demolition at home, which I will dig up if I have time. I also have demolition photos, which I cannot post due to copyright issues, but they show the building before demolition began, the bulldozer hard at work midway through, and workers pulling down the last of the structural steel.

The Real Estate Exchange Building was similar to another Louis Kamper Building, the Hofmann Building, at 2539 Woodward Avenue. The Hofmann was an INCREDIBLE gothic-looking building that was constructed in 1924-1925. It stood just north of the Donovan/Sanders Buildings, on the southwest corner of Woodward & Sibley. It was 10 stories, with a terra cotta base, a red brick shaft, and a gothic terra cotta top, similar to that of the Real Estate Exchange. I've only seen two photos and a postcard of the building, unfortunately. It existed up until at least 1977...my guess would be that it was demolished sometime in the 1980s. It was badly mangled in the cornice chop of '58, when all of the unique gothic detail was stripped off, making it unrecognizable.

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Allan Metropolis

Allan

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The main subway station was to be constructed under Cadillac Square. I believe there was some kind of provision for a tunnel leading from the Real Estate Exchange Building to the station.

The Eaton Tower station is another story however. I have been unable to find any evidence to support that provisions for a tunnel to a subway station were ever considered, let alone actually carried out. It's nothing more than urban legend, although it's fun to talk about.

I do tend to agree with Hudkina, that most of the "blank" walls were expected to be covered at some point. Real estate in 1920s Detroit was booming, and the land values downtown skyrocketed. Economically it wouldn't have made sense to keep outdated 4-6 story buildings when you could build new 20+ story buildings and make huge profits. I have some figures specifically regarding the land value of the site that the Broderick Tower sits on, and how the value of that site increased from virtually nothing to $1.5 million between 1900 & 1928. If the depression had hit later, we'd have quite a few more skyscrapers, including a 30+ story replacement for the outdated Hotel Tuller, a 60 story Fisher Building, and an 80+ story Book Tower, among others.

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hudkina Burg

hudkina

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They just built the garage (at least in Detroit development terms), there is no way they would tear it down.

Also, you don't need to build anything tall on the Hudson site, there is more than enough space around downtown to build. It would also feel out of place in the context of the surrounding area. I would rather see a massive building in the 12 to 15 story range (similar to Compuware) than a 60 story slender tower surrounded by a large plaza.

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