Top 10 Vacant Lots in Downtown in need of redevelopment

This list is my personal opinion:

1. Hudson's site
Obviously. After Hudson's big store went to the grave in '98 this site has been derelict with a measly underground parking garage in its place. Luckily Gilbert owns it, and redevelopment seems on the horizon.

2. Monroe Block
Situated on Campus Martius, this parking lot has been an eyesore. Perhaps the most premiere development spot on the list, this could be easily filled with a small office building, apartments, or maybe even a transit hub for an expanded light rail system.

3. Old Statler Hotel
While East Grand Circus has Comerica, Opera House, and Broadway, the west side has barely anything. The anchor of Washington and on the hub of Grand Circus, I can see this being filed by residental properties. Maybe even a satellite park to Grand Circus.

4. Cadillac Square/Randolph: North and South
These parking lots sit on one of Detroit's hubs for revival. Probably too small for buisness tastes, but at least build a parking garage with first level retail.

5. I-375
This freeway is one of the most useless highways I've ever seen. It'd be great to see the Hastings street sign to be restored to what was one of the most vibrant neighborhoods in Detroit. Connecting Greektown with Lafayette would be great for the area. It would also help connections to Eastern Market [[cough M3 Rail cough)

6. Capitol Park
The buildings on this hidden gem are mostly abandoned. Reviving them would be great for the community. Griswold has a lot of potential.

7. The giant sea of parking lots by Bookies
Making Detroit look like Houston... Illitch Parking. This sea of gravel could be used for so, so many things. While the Eastern lots are used for Tigers games, when's the last time you saw someone park at 3rd and Fisher? This area can just be stacked up into one garage and the rest can be used for a large scale redevelopment project.

8. Gratiot and St Antoine- old jail project
Epic Fail. Put something good here. Level it off, put some sod down and call it Ficano Memorial Park.

9. Madison and Witherell
It is used as a premiere Tigers parking lot, but I could see it be turned into great retail space for merchandise and restaurants. Perhaps a Z-style mix of parking and retail.

10. Cass, Bagley, and Grand River
I could easily see this be turned into a quaint little "Times Square Park" instead of Detroit's smallest, most useless parking lot. Really would revive the dumpy 'Times Square' area.

Well, that's my list. If you disagree, tell me. This is just for downtown only.
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Other than 7 & 9 all those sites are in varying degrees of play in terms of proposals and activities.

As for 9 I am amazed that this has stayed level for so many years even the boom years of the 20's. One would think it would now be a very attractive location to build high rise apartments given that they would look directly down on the Tiger baseball diamond.

This makes me wonder if anything is brewing at Woodward and Elizabeth, the Central Methodist property. Before the 2008 bust an apartment project been announced.

Welcome Microsoftfan. I agree with the priorities. I will say that your no. 6 could use some updating, as most/all of the buildings along Capitol Park minus the Stott are under heavy construction or are close to complete in their residential renovations. There are a few empty lots near Capitol Park, but the northernmost one [[across from Cafe D'Mongos) is all set for Dan Gilbert's first new residential build downtown. So there are really just a few infill lots to be had there. I agree, though, let's fill em up.

To No. 4 I add the huge lot next to the Old County Hall on the east side of Randolph, corner of East Fort.

For No. 2 I'd pursue a 10-15 story base structure filling the block and providing office and retail, with a supertall, slender apartment skyscraper rising out therefrom. Imagine the view provided looking across all of the other downtown skyscrapers and looking down Woodward to the water. Go for super-lux rents and million dollar condos.

Cadillac Square and Randolph doesn't have any vacant lots, does it? There's the flatiron style building on the south side of CS, the building with a 7-11 on the north side, and across Randolph is the old county building. Which lots do you mean for that one? Capitol Park does have a few empty lots but they're pretty small. Many of the buildings there are being renovated. Statler is the only one with a true plan.

I think the two you're missing are on Randolph/Lafayette [[SE and NW corners). Those are some pretty prime spots, and the one on the SE corner is a huge lot.

Relative to the Monroe block - there were terms of the condition of the sale to Gilbert that construction had to begin with 18 months. That will be filled up quickly. It's just a matter of "what" not when. That 18 month deadline is around 1.1.16

The Lafayette Building site. Otherwise, Michigan Avenue would have a solid streetwall...

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Originally Posted by Mackinaw

Welcome Microsoftfan. I agree with the priorities. I will say that your no. 6 could use some updating, as most/all of the buildings along Capitol Park minus the Stott are under heavy construction or are close to complete in their residential renovations. There are a few empty lots near Capitol Park, but the northernmost one [[across from Cafe D'Mongos) is all set for Dan Gilbert's first new residential build downtown. So there are really just a few infill lots to be had there. I agree, though, let's fill em up.

To No. 4 I add the huge lot next to the Old County Hall on the east side of Randolph, corner of East Fort.

For No. 2 I'd pursue a 10-15 story base structure filling the block and providing office and retail, with a supertall, slender apartment skyscraper rising out therefrom. Imagine the view provided looking across all of the other downtown skyscrapers and looking down Woodward to the water. Go for super-lux rents and million dollar condos.

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Yeah, I hadn't been in that area for a year or two. Sounds like a lot is happening.

That lot by the county courthouse could be a great place to put a small office building, like One Kennedy Square [[or whatever the official name of the building is).

I can see a 10-15 story base on Monroe Block, but how tall are you talking for a "supertall" condo development? Taller than the Ren Cen? It'd be great to see that there but I would wonder how Cadillac Tower would be integrated. The lot is unusually shaped. My only concern would be that you can see the river, but how interesting is it to look at Windsor? On the north you see the city in all its glory, and on the west you see rouge, zug island, and the marathon plant.

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Originally Posted by Spartan

Statler is the only one with a true plan.

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There's a plan? I remember hearing about an apartment complex a few years ago, but maybe that was pre-bubble-burst talk. Anyway, it's pretty desolate now. I remember how they tried to spruce up the abandoned statler for Super Bowl '06. Wow, that was hilarious...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MicrosoftFan

There's a plan? I remember hearing about an apartment complex a few years ago, but maybe that was pre-bubble-burst talk. Anyway, it's pretty desolate now. I remember how they tried to spruce up the abandoned statler for Super Bowl '06. Wow, that was hilarious...

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Here's the plan:
http://detroit.curbed.com/archives/2...zen-garden.php

OK.... here is the last thing that was on block #9 probably demolished circa 1920s for parking, and been empty ever since.... looking at it from E. Adams & Witherell, looking SE.

Also, you need to add block #11.... the former Tuller Hotel site at Bagley & Park Ave., that takes up about 2/3 of the Tuller/United Artists block.

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Originally Posted by Spartan

Cadillac Square and Randolph doesn't have any vacant lots, does it?...

I think the two you're missing are on Randolph/Lafayette [[SE and NW corners).

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I think you're talking about the same place. The Randolph/Lafayette is the north [[ish) side of Randolph - the old parking lot for the County Building. The parking lot behind Cadillac Square Apartments, south of Randolph, isn't very big, but it might be a good place for a parking structure to serve new development on the Monroe Block. Oh, and I forgot to say "with street level retail" after parking structure.

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Originally Posted by Gistok

OK.... here is the last thing that was on block #9 probably demolished circa 1920s for parking, and been empty ever since.... looking at it from E. Adams & Witherell, looking SE.

Also, you need to add block #11.... the former Tuller Hotel site at Bagley & Park Ave., that takes up about 2/3 of the Tuller/United Artists block.

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Interesting... PS. What is on the north side of Adams at Park? Looks like the front of a building... but nothing else.

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Originally Posted by MicrosoftFan

Interesting... PS. What is on the north side of Adams at Park? Looks like the front of a building... but nothing else.

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Yeah, the old Fine Arts Building. It's an example of historic preservation by Ilitch & Co.