Exposing the Fine Arts Building

[leland_palmer]

Anyone notice that workers were removing all of the sheets of plywood from the windows of the Fine Arts Building today. Are they working to reseal the building, or are they preparing for the facadectomy?

http://fadeddetroit.blogspot.com/2009/04/somethings-stiring-at-fine-arts.html

[noenaim]

Last summer I went on a Preservation Wayne tour and we were told that Mike Illich (who owns most of the property in that area) was having all but the facade torn down. Some kind office or something like that is being built behind the old front.Is that what you mean by "facadectomy"?

[wolverine]

I like what you can't see above the first row of rooms.....the collapsed interior of this building. I'm very happy they are saving the facade, I just wish they could salvage the beautiful doorways in the interior. But the actual building behind the facade can't be saved. Impossible

[Rocko]

Yes, when the front facade is the only this that is saved and a completed new building is built behind it, that it what is referred to a facadectomy. Not really the aim of historic preservation, but it is better than complete demolition to erect something modern in it's place. It can be especially substantiated if the facade is of unique architecture.

[charlottepaul]

The city gave him money to tear down the interior of the building in exchange for preserving the facade.

[charlottepaul]

Only God knows how long a facade that tall will stand up. They tried doing something like that to a facade down here in Charlotte. Problem was, it was only braced at the top. We had a really windy day, and the whole thing came down.

[leland_palmer]

They were able to pull it off with the Mid-Med lofts but that was only 4 floors vs 6. I am concerned as well that it will accidentally collapse and become another parking lot.

[buzzman0077]

When I was looking at apts in the Kales building the manager says that Illich is planning to build a new office there when the demo is complete he apparently is running out of space at the Fox.

[leland_palmer]

When I was looking at apts in the Kales building the manager says that Illich is planning to build a new office there when the demo is complete he apparently is running out of space at the Fox.

What happened with moving Olympia Development into the Detroit Life Building? That project went nowhere once the Superbowl left town.

[Rocko]

I drove by around 4PM today...most of the window coverings are off except for the bottom 2 floors or so. I hope this project moves forward and is a success...and not a new parking lot.

[Khartoum]

I am concerned as well that it will accidentally collapse and become another parking lot.

Co-signed.

[Gistok]

Good point Leland... I too worry about the Fine Arts Building. So far all that has been mentioned is saving the facade... that doesn't give one a warm fuzzy feeling when no redevelpment plans are announced in tandem with it.

It would be a pity to lose another of the West Adams buildings.

At some point in the past the Hurley Hospital (a 7 story brown brick building) was torn down between the Kales and Fine Arts Building, thus providing the only gap along the north streetwall of West Adams along GCP. Lets hope that gap doesn't become a canyon...

[Novine]

Where are all of the Mr. I boosters to promise us he's a man of his word?

[Lorax]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the Fine Arts Building's facade is all masonry, and no steel superstructure.

I think it pre-dates the common use of steel I-beam construction first used in Chicago's Reliance Building.

If the facade isn't braced front and back first, usually done with wood bracing and steel strapping, similar to what you'd see on a shipping crate, then the chances of it falling when the remainder of the building is demolished is great.

The tell-tale sign will be how it's demolished, and if bracing is evident before hand. If not, then assume the entire building's coming down.

[wolverine]

The building interior is off wood and steel construction. I recall large wooden beams supporting wood floor joists on the interior, A few columns were made of steel, but I think most were wood. There were some places where an entire column had been knocked out. It's safe to assume water damage was responsible for starting the damage, but there where also parts where structural members were knocked out by force. Demolition is going to be tricky, and I can imagine one bad move would send the whole place crashing down.

So you are probably right that much of the facade is self supporting, although by now the interior is doing much of the work. In fact, it looks as though the top of the facade is being pulled into the building. The top floor was leaning down toward the center from the front wall unlike the lower floors that started sloping at least 12 feet in from the front. Half of floors two and three are missing, and the walls of those floors are suspended from the fourth floor.

[leland_palmer]

Any updates?

[digitalvision]

I'll try to snap a few pics, I'm going that way this evening, so smarter people than me about this stuff people can figure out what's going on.

[detroitbob]

I drove through downtown and stopped and watched a crew removing the cornice from the Fine Arts bldg. All the windows are gone and there appears to be a opening in the side of the Adams theatre auditorium, south wall, probably where the old organ chamber was located. The Elizabeth street side of theatre is still intact. I will be interested in seeing what is behind the metal covering over the center part of the lower cornice which is probably where some sort of sign was located originally. I imagine that portion will be removed as they proceed with the cornice removal.

[MDoyle]

dbob, just came from there 2 mins ago. Cornice is still up as far as i can see. All of the plywood is removed at this point exposing the 1st floor windows. Definitely looks like it was a shady place last time it was in use. Hope its saved. Dont need anymore teeth knocked out of that street wall.

[Gistok]

The Fine Arts Building was the entry point to the Adams Theatre until circa 1988-90, when a shooting in the theatre caused CAY to close them down. The Ilitch's bought it around that time, and hadn't done any maintenance on it since (it was a working movie theatre).

Then in the early 1990's there was a restaurant that opened up in the building called "On Stage".... which was about a dozen years ahead of its' time... it closed after about 2 years.

On Stage had something like 5 different theatre type sets or seating areas inside the place (the interiors are still there believe it or not). Depending on where you were seated inside the restaurant, you were either in a train dining car, or above than (on a mezzanine level) on an ocean liner. Another seating area was a French bistro (with a 12 ft. tall two dimensional Eifel Tower nearby). One area was a medieval setting, and I can't remember the last seating area...

It was kinda cool inside that restaurant, and a theme like that would have been great in the theatre district today. But back in the early 1990's the theatre district just wasn't as far along as it is today.

[detroitbob]

Yesterday afternoon the workers were at the cornice-pediment on the west corner of the facade. The first floor windows were still boarded up. OnStage replaced the old Victor Lim's a huge, multi level Chinese American (step above chop suey but not as greasy as Stanley's up on E. Baltimore) place that was very popular. Does anyone remember Discount Records closer to Woodward, near the bar with the carved facade next to the Fyfe. At some point there was a Roy Rogers Roast Beef fast food joint cobbled in there somewhere for a few years after the record store left. there was also another "discount records' in the arcade at the Book Cadillac, Michigan Ave. side. Yes, Virginia, there were stores downtown! in addition to Santa Claus at Hudsons.

[downtownguy]

The OnStage opened in the mid-to-late 1980s, before Ilitch bullied the Fox away from Chuck Forbes. The OnStage was a concept dreamt up by Michael Vanoverbeke, a young law student. Michael's inspiration for the restaurant was that Chuck Forbes was saving and/or restoring all these precious buildings in the theatre district and even though many of them still stood empty, the restaurant would play off that history, synergy and promise.

The restored Fox opened in the fall of 1988, and the Elwood, now under Forbes ownership, was restored and reopened in Feb. 1989. The Elwood, thanks to numerous stories in the press, quickly became the place to go before a show at the Fox and was often overwhelmed with customers. I lived a couple of blocks away. Often, when walking by the Elwood, I would tell people standing too far back in line to ever get served before show time that there was another restaurant around the corner with this great theatrical theme and they would be able to walk in and get a table with no wait. Most people just ignored me (why is that man talking to us?) or sometimes someone would ask if it was safe to journey over there. "It's <bleeping> just around the corner" I would reply. Still, just about everyone would stay in line at the Elwood for the table that would never come.

Unfortunately, The OnStage's grand opening and moment in the spotlight came before all the hoopla over the theatre district. The newspapers had already done their reviews of the OnStage a few years before. Since the News and Freep were in the midst of making a case for a Joint Operating Agreement and simultaneously cutting back on editorial space, they were too stingy to give the OnStage any more significant ink after the Fox's reopening. I have always wondered if the OnStage was not so far ahead of it's time and instead had opened after the Fox, would it still be in business today?

The OnStage closed around 1990. Last I knew, Michael Vanoverbeke had a law firm in a historic house in Brush Park.

[Gistok]

Thanks for filling in the details Downtownguy... I believe I was there just before it closed circa 1990. It was a cool place to go... and ironically much of the interior (sans the furniture) is still there (at least it was seen in a recent bloggers website when he snuck into the building).

[nickstone]

annnnnnnd.... here ya go!
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[Rocko]

Here are a couple grab shots from the car as I rolled through downtown on the way to Belle Isle this morning about 9:30. Looks like they're well underway on removing the old roofline cornice (terra cotta and brick?). Unfortunately, I wasn't able to drive by later in the day to see if they had made any other progress.

648

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[leland_palmer]

Work continues today...
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_2uL9b4oOkoY/SeoeJtnUwYI/AAAAAAAAGrE/ORKPcVJL9fM/s1600/Detroit-20090419-004.jpg

[buildingsofdetroit]

Yeah, I swung by today on my way into work. Only one piece of the railing left. Got some photos.

[Rocko]

Are they demolishing that cornice line or taking it off piece by piece so it can be reinstalled when they've built a new building behind it?

[buildingsofdetroit]

Are they demolishing that cornice line or taking it off piece by piece so it can be reinstalled when they've built a new building behind it?

I HOPE that's what they're doing. Seems like they're being careful, though I don't know why they'd need to take the railing down if they're saving the facade. Then again, I'm not a structural engineer.

[Whitehouse]

Last post was made exactly one year ago. In stead of posting a fresh topic on the Fine Arts Building, I resurrected this thread from the deep end of the forum. The reason is this picture. For sheer quality value; what an astonishing picture!

http://i41.tinypic.com/vikxfk.gif
(Via Smugmug.)
Have there been any recent developments?

[DetroitDad]

Have there been any recent developments?

There most certainly has.

First, the facade is now lit up at night, and the sidewalks are now taken care of. The structure is constantly being worked on, and there is some work going on at street level. I'm not sure if this is for the street or the Fine Arts Building. I'm sure the Subway next door has seen business improve, with all the construction workers in the area.

For those of us used to a Downtown ghost town of the last decade, Grand Circus Park is very much alive, and vitality has returned. Still, Grand Circus Park's best days are still ahead, and the people are still far and few between... but there are people utilizing the park now!

[Warrenite84]

I haven't heard anything but have a rear view of the facade I uploaded awhile back...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gab482/4305854151/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gab482/4306595806/sizes/o/in/photostream/

[davewindsor]

I'm curious how they assess a wall for property taxes if it's going to be standing there for the next decade. Do they treat it like vacant land or are they gonna say it's worth a million bucks?