Kresge's New Mini Mall

[Designerguy24]

This one ofthe most awsome things I've heard in a while I am very excited about this! I hope it works ot and spurs more development over in that area for stores!

[apbest]

Gnome,

If you look at the first picture posted above [[Ill repost the link here)

http://www.detroityes.com/mb/attachm...6&d=1239721575

The white building on the far right, with only its top floors peeking into the picture is the previously announced loft project you're referring to

http://www.twelve-25.com/ [[project website)

[dtowncitylover]

The last Downtown Detroit Days was the early 1980s when Downtown Hudson's closed.

[DetroitPlanner]

Thanks for the pics. It looks a lot better than I expected it to look. I can remember the Cafe and sports/toys in the basement, household goods, health and beauty on the first floor, and clothes on the second. Does anyone else have any other recollections?

I will try to get out of behind my desk tommorrow and check it out.

I can also recall the Woolworth's counter was on the N wall and there was some kind of lounge area that was above it.

[Rocko]

Lowell should open a painting and photography studio and gallery/store within. That would entice me to shop here!

[Danny]

So far, the Woodward Corridor from Campus Martius Park to Grand Circus Park has 15 stores. The Shops in Kresge Building would bring whole a sudden retail boom since the Archer days.

[penelope]

Anything that Boydell Development does turns out to be a dump. As someone who has lived in their buildings for longer then I want to admit, they are the worst landlords ever.
I guess on one hand it's good that they are buying buildings and putting in stores and making everything into lofts. But at the same time what's the point of doing that if they end up not being taken care of and maintained.
I wish there was a development company as active as Boydell who did it with more integrity.
I am moving out of their buildings in a month and I cannot wait.

[tekla]

Penelope-

I too live in a crappy Boydell building [[universal lofts). Just out of curiosity, which one do you live in??

[gnome]

Thanx for the clarification.

On the development itself, do I understand that they expect to have a bar on the first floor and dildo, incense and shea butter kiosks upstairs? hmm. Classy.

Maybe something is better than nothing, but jeeze louise can't wait to take mom downtown for all her marital aid needs.

[buildingsofdetroit]

Free Press has a story up:

http://freep.com/article/20090416/BU...+gets+new+life

[Rocko]

Any other forumers planning to attend the opening on April 30? If I'm around I might drop in then to see how it looks.

[Rocko]

This went up on Crain's website today. I didn't know he also owned Nikki's Pizza in Greektown.

Detroit’s Kresge Building may become home to retail marketplace

By Daniel Duggan

Real estate investor and restaurant owner Dennis Kefallinos plans to take a big gamble on a new retail project in Detroit.

Kefallinos on April 30 will announce the opening of a 40,000-square-foot retail development called Shops in the Kresge Building. The project will feature 120 small spaces to be leased to retailers for $600-to-$1,200-per-month.

The name for the shops pays homage to its location in the building where the heart of Detroit retail once thrived; the former Kresge store and headquarters on Woodward at State Street.

Kefallinos’ vision for the center is a bustling area where consumers can browse and purchase art, clothing and food from local entrepreneurs. Along with the retail, he hopes the creation of a new bar and restaurant will make the project a destination along Woodward.

“I’ve got a lot of determination and a unique concept,� he said. “And there’s a lot of demand for a destination spot in Detroit right now.�

By charging low rent for a space ranging from 120 to 400 square feet, Kefallinos hopes the project will be a way for local entrepreneurs to get a start. He also hopes it’s a way for Detroit to get a start in retail as well.

“You have to go back to the original ideas,� he said. “This is how [[retailers) got started in the 1900s.�

The leasing and marketing effort will launch with the project’s announcement, but five spaces have been leased, Kefallinos said.

He has attempted this idea with the Russell Bazaar in the Russell Industrial Center, which he also owns. There are currently 110 retail spaces leased in that venture.

Kefallinos plans a different character in the downtown retail project, expecting it to be more family-oriented than the more hipster audience at the Russell Industrial Center.

He would not say how much he spent on the interior space at the Kresge building. He has owned the building for more than 10 years and is fronting his own money for the build-out of the space, complete with slate floors and marble appointments in the individual retail spaces.

Also included with be the 5 & 10 restaurant and bar to be fronting Woodward.

With the Russell Bazaar being the only precedent outside of what he’s seen in Europe and South America, Kefallinos readily admits there is risk in the move.

“It’s a gamble,� he said. “Especially when I see everything closed up on Woodward and everyone leaving the city. But at the end of the day, even if it’s not successful, I’ll be happy to know that I tried.�

Retail consultants say the idea has worked in other markets, but management of the space and selection of the tenants is crucial.

“This has worked all over the world, and especially during a down-cycle of the economy when large spaces are available,� said Stan Eichelbaum, a Detroit native and president of Ft. Lauderdale-based retail developer advisory firm Marketing Developments Inc. “You can wind up with wonderful public marketplaces, a very invigorated form of retailing.�

Ken Nisch, chairman of Southfield-based retail consulting firm JGA Inc. said the difference between a flea market and a specialty market will be contingent on the management.

“Make-it or break-it will be the mix of tenants, how it’s marketed and how interactive it will be, involving food and bars,� he said.

The Kresge project is a relatively big leap for Kefallinos, who has focused on real estate acquisition, restaurants and apartments.

He moved to the United States from Greece at the age of 15. He worked his way up in the restaurant industry from the job as a busboy until he purchased his own restaurant, Nikki’s in Greektown in 1980.

He’s broadened his roster of restaurants to include three, in addition to the development of rental residential projects. Across the city of Detroit, Kefallinos owns 800 rental units combined at all of his properties and has another 200 in the works.

Retail is something that’s missing in Detroit, he said. And owning the historic Kresge building inspired him to make his move.

“I’m looking for tenants with a vision like mine,� he said. “Those who see that this can be a great city again.�

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...FREE/904169970

[DetroitDad]

I'm seriously considering opening our clothing store here. It looks like a good deal, and a good way to get our start.

[j to the jeremy]

An example of a similar concept that worked to revive the downtown in Northampton, MA.
http://www.thornesmarketplace.com/

Of course, that's a much smaller town . But the vibe in Thornes, when I was there, sounds very much like the "best case" scenario imagined for the Kresge Building.

[Hans57]

So, it is a flea market. Oh well, it'll be something positive.

[French777]

Really excited about these shops!!

I heard that the Kales building is near capacity for residents. . Isn't that a Boydell Devolpment?

[pffft]

How is this different than Trapper's Alley [[which, for the record, I enjoyed...but some days it felt like I was the only visitor)...

[Toolbox]

Really excited about these shops!!

I heard that the Kales building is near capacity for residents. . Isn't that a Boydell Devolpment?

The kales is NOT a Boydell property.

He is also a flesh peddler - Bozuki Lounge.

[French777]

Oops my mistake!

[vivadetroit]

The Kales is too nice to be a Boydell property. And kudos to the Kales team for filling up that beautiful building.

If you're interested in a Boydell slumloft, there's 5 people moving out of my building in 2 weeks. Want a leaky roof [[from 2 floors up!), drug dealers downstairs - just to got offered some coke [[and not the liquid kind) on my way up tonight and dead animals in the parking lot to give it that nice nice ambiance?? It's all here....

[penelope]

Tekla,
I live in the Iron street/riverpark lofts.
We need a support group for Boydell tenants.

[rsa.313]

ha ha; viva you sound like you lived in the building i did! [i had a leaky roof unit.]

no kidding penelope; there are plenty of us around...

[Fury13]

The kales is NOT a Boydell property.

He is also a flesh peddler - Bozuki Lounge.

Yep, the Bouzouki is his, and I believe he has the strip joint on Griswold too [[across from D'Mongo's). He also has the Coaches' Corner bar in Harmonie Park, as well as Niki's and Loco's restaurants. He seemingly has an endless list of rental and vacant properties.

He sure gets a lot of positive press, in spite of his not-so-squeaky-clean rep.

[DetroitPlanner]

Maybe they can hold gun and knife shows here for those who can't take the bus to the Gibralter Trade Centers?

[digitalvision]

He's doing something smart and investing when everyone else is pulling out [[and also investing in yourself in a down economy) - if you have the money to do that, this is really the best time. Cheap prices, lots of availability, and competition that's hurting.

As to why the press - you frankly don't see that many people investing. I hear a lot of bitching about "people should do this" or "people should do that" but when the rubber comes to the road, it's nothing more than a peanut gallery. He's at least doing something.

Could he do better? Unequivocally, yes. Does he sound like just about every other apartment owner in the price range he specializes in I've heard of, in the city and the suburbs? Yep. He fills a market need.

In this age of the internet, people forget that you get what you pay for. I've lived in places ranging across the board in rent over the last decade plus - and the quality of the landlord directly equates [[most times) to how much you pay per square foot.

The places I stayed that were $500-$750 sound just like the complaints I hear about Dennis. The places that were $1000 and up, great landlords, great service, and that would be because they can afford to do that. There are always exceptions to every rule, but if you don't pay much, don't expect to get much.