Posted January 9, 200916 yr 6 dilapidated downtown buildings owned by the Illitch family's Olympia Development are going to be demolished but they will be saving the facade of the Fine Arts/Adams Theatre Building. It will be saved because of an agreement with the city's Historic District Commission. Olympia will pick up the tab for the estimated $500,000 facade stabilization. I was in the D today so I went a little picture crazy with this building. Some history http://www.forgottendetroit.com/adams/history.html
January 9, 200916 yr BTW, I love this building and I'm happy to see the facade being saved. It's a facade that MUST be saved because of what it contributes to the scale along the streetwall. However, I don't believe anyone here knows what lurks beneath this facade. The whole structure cannot be saved. It would take an act of God. It's so collapsed and dangerous that every little step you take this building groans. I have photos of the interior if anyone is interested.
November 18, 200915 yr Okay so I copied off the Cincinnati thread :laugh: I decided to make this one for buildings outside of downtown that aren't significant enough to deserve their own threads. Here is the soon to be demo'd Lincolnshire
November 18, 200915 yr No!!! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
November 18, 200915 yr That demo company's website lists a bunch of specific projects they've demo'd but along with those lists "City of Detroit". A tragic but amusing generalization.
November 22, 200915 yr Here are 2 more, by the same company and in the same area. They are near the Henry Ford Hospital. More parking ugh
November 23, 200915 yr Bet the Lincolnshire was pretty swanky in it's day. Another sad day for Dee-troit. Will the nightmare ever end?
November 24, 200915 yr These buildings are actually several blocks and one major street away. IMO they are trying to dump a liability
November 25, 200915 yr A library just off Warren was demolished recently. It opened in 1912. http://www.flickr.com/photos/detroitderek/2191018478/#
November 25, 200915 yr Dequindre Cut http://www.detroiteasternmarket.com/page.php?p=1&s=68 (more pics) Damn what an amazing project this is. It's the first I've heard of it. Would love to do something similiar to this or the NY HighLine in Cleveland. Nice job Detroit.
November 25, 200915 yr A library just off Warren was demolished recently. It opened in 1912. http://www.flickr.com/photos/detroitderek/2191018478/# Looks like a Carnegie, even. Sad.
December 11, 200915 yr I hit up the 14 schools that are about to be demolished. Below are the ones worth mentioning. Cass Tech There are some great pictures on flickr http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=cass%20tech&w=all Newberry Elementary Chadsey High Munger Ferry Elementary Sherrard Elementary/Middle Breitmeyer Elementary http://www.detnews.com/article/20091208/SCHOOLS/912080344/1409/METRO/Historic-Cass-Tech-faces-demolition-crew
December 12, 200915 yr Dequindre Cut http://www.detroiteasternmarket.com/page.php?p=1&s=68 (more pics) Damn what an amazing project this is. It's the first I've heard of it. Would love to do something similiar to this or the NY HighLine in Cleveland. Nice job Detroit. I think the Towpath Trail is something quite similar in spirit, and even larger in scope. You'll get your "bisecting urban ruggedness" feel from it once it finishes the last 4 miles to Whiskey Island, which is getting ever closer.
April 19, 201015 yr Some of these apartment buildings (or all, no can say exactly which ones) are in danger of being demolished for a 10-story housing complex. http://www.detnews.com/article/20100409/BIZ/4090340/Midtown-development-sparks-battles
April 21, 201015 yr A library just off Warren was demolished recently. It opened in 1912. http://www.flickr.com/photos/detroitderek/2191018478/# Wait...where is this library? That looks an awful lot like the library i went to as a kid, that would crush me if it's gone. I think it was right next to the Alger's Theater on Outer Drive. Edit: after looking on google street view...no, i was thinking about the Jefferson branch which isn't as architecturally beautiful. That's too bad.
April 25, 201015 yr A lot of people are worried about the University Club/YWCA. It was recently purchased by an area party store owner who said he has no idea how to reuse the historic building and wouldn't say if he plans to have it demolished. What a loss it would be. It is a beautiful building on the inside too. http://freep.com/article/20100331/BUSINESS06/100331054/1320/Historic-building-sold-to-party-store-owner Update: all the buildings in reply #3 are now gone. I was sad to see the tall art deco building go :(
April 26, 201015 yr Pics in reply #16 look like the area near Wayne State campus, am I correct? Alot of great old 3 & 4 story brick apartment buildings near there, has remained stable. I was in the market to buy a place back in 2007 when I was living in Detroit. Was looking at the renovated Willy's loft building south of Wayne State. There was a cool little micro brewery coming along over there and a few other new ventures and it seemed to be coming together.
April 29, 201015 yr Pics in reply #16 look like the area near Wayne State campus, am I correct? Alot of great old 3 & 4 story brick apartment buildings near there, has remained stable. Yes, it is right across Cass from WSU. The old Huntington Hotel is now demolished. It caught on fire from a man dropping a lit cigarette. Here are some pictures from January.
May 5, 201015 yr Incredibly sad. When a building closes in Detroit's it's safe to assume it will come down, either by an authorized demolition or scrapping. I've never been opposed to Detroit's vacant building stock being stripped down of architectural detailing and shipped off elsewhere. I mean look at the Huntington, they'll just smash it to pieces with no regard to those details.
May 5, 201015 yr Actually there are a number of architectural salvage shops around the Detroit area that make a living taking out unique interior & exterior details such as stone insets or scrolls, unique mantles, doors, marble insets, stained glass, etc. Not all is lost.
May 15, 201015 yr The Former Romney home in Plamer Woods is on the cities demolition list. The 5,500 square-foot house is in Palmer Woods. 2 future governors lived there, George Romney (Michigan's 43rd in 1963) and former Mass. governor Mitt Romney. Check out the article for pictures of the house. http://www.detnews.com/article/20100515/METRO01/5150359/1409/Former-Romney-home-on-Detroit-s-demolition-list
May 17, 201015 yr It looks like someone was in the middle of an addition/renovation of the former Romney home.
May 23, 201015 yr This apartment building was destroyed by an arsonist. I have pictures of it before the collapse but after the fire too. Newberry School is currently being demolished
June 8, 201015 yr Mitt Romney's childhood Detroit home demolished By SUZETTE HACKNEY FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER The childhood home of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney was met by bulldozers today in one of Detroit’s most elite neighborhoods.
June 10, 201015 yr Reason helped to guide decisions on future of Detroit castoffs BY JOHN GALLAGHER FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER Detroit is dotted with distinguished but vacant architecture. From empty schools to empty skyscrapers, these castoffs challenge our best efforts to remake the city. Keep them or demolish them?
June 11, 201015 yr Here is a breakdown of the 10 building with history, pictures and why they should be saved or not. I agree with pretty much all of it except the Metropolitan is a definite save for me. http://www.freep.com/article/20100610/BUSINESS04/100609080/Raze-or-save?-10-notable-vacant-Detroit-buildings
June 11, 201015 yr Oh and concerning the Packard Plant. I am one of the biggest preservationists around but I can't argue with them saying that Packard should be razed. I would be kinda sad to see it go given its history but really, there is no logical reuse of the building. Maybe part of it could be saved for a museum but even that is a stretch. I doubt anything is happening with the building and when something does it would be demolished.
June 12, 201015 yr ^Do you think a Tyler Village type of development could make the Packard complex more viable? I know that Detroit's economy is really bad, but that type of development strategy might be possible.
June 27, 201014 yr The Packard plant lacks the structural capacity to continue its existence. If we were talking about a building that could actually hold itself up a few more years, then a renovation would be possible. Nearly every column and beam would require retrofitting. It'd be much more affordable to build 3 Packard plant all brand new. Saving the Packard is like trying to save a sand castle. It's simply not possible, which is why most preservationists avoid even mentioning a second life for this structure.
June 30, 201014 yr The Metropolitan must be saved. It would be a tremendous waste of public tax dollars the state used to clean and mothball the building. Indeed there are some water infiltration issues in teh wall cavities that require a good deal of replacement, but this is common and not a dooming factor. Repairs should be made with inexpensive build-outs of residential space. The building should be marketed as affordable for young indviduals looking for a "starter apartment." It's a given that the building cannot go high end condo. The floor plates are difficult, and the ceilings are very low. But it would be a mistake to let this building go.
July 9, 201014 yr Detriot is going to Hell in a handbag. It's been dying for the past 40years. '67 Riots were beginning of The End. This latest round of demolition is about 30% of the city.... The nail in the coffin. We're literally watching the destruction of Detriot before our eyes. Its not ironic the birthplace of the automobile is also the largest casualty thus far of urban decay. That's not coincidental. 1,000,000 people flee the city in under 50 years time; terribly high crime rate, corrupt city government, deadly race riots, abandoned 30 story skyscrapers... scary times in Motown.
July 10, 201014 yr Demolition near WSU. No big loss. Is it "not a big loss?" I would need to see close up. I saw a bunch of older photos of a pretty beautiful looking structure beneath all that mess. Well, it's gone now.
August 22, 201014 yr I recently noticed this building in Cass Park is gone. This picture is from April.
September 13, 201014 yr Right now there are tons of historic buildings being burned down by arsonists and squatters. A much better job needs to be done to secure these buildings. Another elaborate structure, the Highland Apartments was recently lost to fire. Firefighters spotted an arsonist setting multiple fires and then running off. A business on Jefferson was set on fire critically injuring firefighters when a section of the building collapsed. The arsonist was later caught.
September 13, 201014 yr ^I've taken several pictures in recent weeks of both those buildings (Highland Towers and east Jefferson building). I'm pretty pissed about the Highland Towers, that was one of my favorite buildings in Highland Park. I'll try to upload pictures later.
September 15, 201014 yr You know, I've been wondering for awhile. What is Detroit's physical age (dated by its existing structures). It seems that everyday Detroit loses substantial numbers of prewar architecture that give definition to the city. By definition, I mean commercial buildings on retail corridors and large apartment buildings. Detroit really doesn't have those anymore. It's the strangest thing. Certainly there are still neighborhoods with swaths of homes form the 30's, but the heaviest population centers in the city are in homes built in the 1940's on. When all these schools, apartment buildings, and even skyscrapers are gone, will we even think of Detroit as a place of history, or will we equate it with newer cities like Houston and Phoenix? This city had some ridiculously beautiful structures, but many are doomed.
September 19, 201014 yr That Eastown theater was a looker. If I could go back in time and pick one city to see, say in the early-mid 1940s, it would be Detroit.
September 20, 201014 yr I happened to be in town on September 7, which was when there was an estimated 85 fires. I saw one firsthand. Here is an old commercial building on Chene St.
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