Oak Park sues Restaurateur sitting on old WWJ transmitter building

**Lowell** · December-16-23, 01:27 PM

Hopefully this doesn't bode ill for this lovely Art Deco and arguably historic building.

The city of Oak Park has lost patience with a prominent restaurateur and his long-stalled plan to transform the old WWJ transmitter building on Eight Mile into a restaurant.

The city on Thursday filed a lawsuit against a company belonging to Curt Catallo, co-owner of the Union Joints restaurant group, claiming that none of his planned rehab work has been done and that the transmitter building, 12700 Eight Mile, has deteriorated to the point of becoming “a blighted safety hazard.”
JC Reindl Free Press

Photos I took in 2002...

**Richard** · December-17-23, 02:36 AM

How many times have you seen this story repeated in the city,even though they are privately owned buildings they do play an important part in the history and fabric of the city.

I think the city needs to set some really tough mothballing standards before it’s like in every other city where one by one they all just disappear.

Blighted safety hazard is code speak for - It’s time to demolish it.

**Gistok** · December-17-23, 03:29 PM

^ Richard... this time it is in Oak Park... a suburb just north of the Detroit city limits.

And also in this instance, I don't believe that the building owners are doing anything nefarious about the property. The owners of the property are the same folks who own the Vinsetta Garage Restaurant, located in the oldest auto repair building surviving east of the Mississippi.

https://www.thegentlemanracer.com/20...ta-garage.html

It may just be a combination of high interest rates combined with the Pandemic, and other factors we don't know about, that has this building languishing for 8 years. I don't believe they they are not trying to get a development going.

Could they be doing more to at least maintain the building... yes I do believe so.

**Johnnny5** · December-21-23, 08:50 PM

Originally Posted by Gistok

^ Richard... this time it is in Oak Park... a suburb just north of the Detroit city limits.

And also in this instance, I don't believe that the building owners are doing anything nefarious about the property. The owners of the property are the same folks who own the Vinsetta Garage Restaurant, located in the oldest auto repair building surviving east of the Mississippi.

I'm not so sure everything is on the up and up here. According to the article they initially paid just 165k for the building, but have received more than 1.65 MILLION in taxpayer dollars over the last 7 years and what does the community have to show for it? The building is apparently in worse shape now than when they purchased it, and looking at the historical aerials on Google there appear to have been no significant repairs to the exterior or the roof. Nor have the trees even been trimmed back from it since the purchase a they are now growing onto and over the building. Other than the contamination remediation, where did all that money go? Perhaps this lawsuit will help answer that question?

**Richard** · December-22-23, 11:41 AM

So there you go,buy a cheap building,get the money,invest that money in projects that offer a higher return in a better location.

Where else can you leverage $165k into $1.6 mil ,or less if it was financed?

Who would have ever thought you could not sell $100 hamburgers out of that location?

Thats the oldest trade trick in the book when buying time from a city,put the building up for sale at a price that nobody in the world would pay and it gives the ability to say ,I am not doing anything.

Same thing that is happening with the P building,it gets the city off of the owners back while buying time as the building continues to deteriorate.

**Gistok** · December-22-23, 05:18 PM

^ Richard... the slumlord of the Penobscot Building died in 2021... now his son I believe owns it. Not sure he's any better...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andreas_Apostolopoulos

**Richard** · December-22-23, 05:32 PM

^ yes,I’m am aware without the use of Wiki thingy.

It’s for sale for $70 million,now re-read my post and see how it applies.

We could go halves if you want,but at $70 million non negotiable,there are plenty of already refurbished historical buildings across the country that are turn key that are simular.

So you have to ask yourself if it is worth $130-$140 million refurbished in Detroit,if I won the lottery yea okay,it’s a cool building that needs to be saved and reality would not matter.

But in order to fulfill that fantasy,while killing the one of being on a South American beach with 6 20 yo hotties while drinking Cuba Libres and smoking cigars,I would have to actually start playing the lottery in the first place.

I could raise the funds but then I would have to go back to dating a woman that there was a reason I broke up with in the first place.

We could try that crowd funding thing or hook up with one of these social justice groups that seem to raise millions for a few personal gain,they are always looking for somebody to wash money for them.

Outside of that don’t know the solution.

**Jimaz** · December-22-23, 07:38 PM

Originally Posted by Richard

...I’m am aware....

The irony — and by that I'm not referring to the artificially unintelligent grammar.

**Gistok** · December-22-23, 09:00 PM

^I'm not even sure what his post was even about?

Holiday blues?

**Richard** · December-23-23, 01:16 AM

^ at least I do not need wiki to find out what is going on in the city I live in or even one 1200 miles away,if you two need the internet in order to fluff each others egos up,maybe you should just meet for coffee?

You guys are easy to lose - look over there a squirrel.

**Gistok** · December-23-23, 03:15 PM

Richard... all I did was list one link... JUST ONE LINK...

Then you went off the wagon again [the word salad wagon]. I did nothing to argue with you or provoke you...

**EASTSIDER BALDUCK** · December-23-23, 09:25 PM

BTW not in Detroit.

**ABetterDetroit** · December-23-23, 11:32 PM

He is mental.

For years all he did was defend Blight Lords Morouns on these boards whose sole purpose was to devalue and demo as much property as they possibly could in Detroit and never restored a damn thing. Now he “thinks the city needs really tough mothballing standards.” Big Government needs to save the day! The irony is lost on him.

Dick just contradicts himself constantly. No pun intended. All just to argue with anyone on a community board for a metro he has never even set foot in and knows nothing about as yet again, for the umpteenth time, demonstrated in this thread. Sad, really sad that nobody cares about him enough from spending all day every day here. 6,570 posts with prolly 10 times more words than anyone. Makes up more BS than he could ever possibly keep straight in contradictory rambling insanity. A Crazy, certifiable weirdo. Florida earns its reputation for having nut jobs. No doubt about it.

**Richard** · December-24-23, 11:09 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

Richard... all I did was list one link... JUST ONE LINK...

Then you went off the wagon again [the word salad wagon]. I did nothing to argue with you or provoke you...

Why do you not keep it simple and tell everybody why you get so triggered over posts that are not required reading ?

Just because you do not understand some things it does not make everybody else wrong.

Just like the one that goes on about people in Florida,does not stop to think about 80% of the people in Florida came from somewhere else and a lot from Detroit and Michigan,so what is he really saying?

If a few of you were that brilliant or even had an ounce of common sense,1/2 of these discussions would not even be happening,it is a discussion forum.

Some probably do need to move away from the region,if they cannot or do not care enough to get out of the way of the ones trying to make it a better place,instead of providing examples of why it may not be.

Somebody posted the building was not in Detroit,which should be your first clue that Detroit does not have exclusive problems,it has problems that give you choices,either continue to trip over hurdles that others already figured out how to overcome and deal with them,or whine about others.

Its totally irrelevant if I am there or not,weather I am 1 block away or 1200 miles away you are still my neighbors and we are all in this together,if some cannot understand that,is their problem and not mine.

**Gistok** · December-24-23, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by Richard

Why do you not keep it simple and tell everybody why you get so triggered over posts that are not required reading?

Richard that is sooooo rich... YOU telling everyone else why do we not keep it simple...

**Richard** · December-24-23, 07:23 PM

^ Actually I did not tell anybody to do anything,I asked you a question,which in turn instead of answering you flipped it back on me,the first clue would have been that use of the question mark at the end of the sentence.

I do keep my posts simple,you can simply choose to read them or ignore them,it does not get much simpler than that.

You can even choose to respond to the content provided within them,but when you decide to interject your pettiness at me personally,then you just come across as a petty person.

**Gistok** · December-24-23, 11:36 PM

That's nice...

**Jimaz** · December-25-23, 02:42 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

That's nice...

Someone's been taking elocution lessons.

**canuck** · December-25-23, 04:17 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

That's nice...

Well whaddyaknow, when in compliment mode, he can do short! Lol

**Richard** · December-25-23, 03:30 PM

What is interesting is there are times when the ones whining about others long posts,do create long posts themselves,when they can be bothered to actually contribute in a meaningful way,so it is okay for them when it suits them ,just not others.

**mikefmich** · December-26-23, 03:47 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

Richard that is sooooo rich... YOU telling everyone else why do we not keep it simple...

Go Gistok!

Such irony coming from someone who writes War and Peace missives with every post. And one of the main reasons I rarely pop up in here anymore.

**Richard** · December-26-23, 08:22 AM

That has to be a new level of lame,I do not want to contribute because somebody makes a post that I have the full capability of either scrolling past or blocking the person so I do not even see the post to be triggered by them in the first place.

It’s like a competition to see who can be the most childish and immature,with pride.

**canuck** · December-26-23, 09:50 AM

Originally Posted by Richard

That has to be a new level of lame,I do not want to contribute because somebody makes a post that I have the full capability of either scrolling past or blocking the person so I do not even see the post to be triggered by them in the first place.

It’s like a competition to see who can be the most childish and immature,with pride.

You win.