An Abandoned Symbol Of Detroit's Better Days -- MCD on NPR

I just now just heard an excellent piece on the MCD by Celeste Headlee that featured forum member Renf and Dan Stamper, the latter with the usual excuses for neglect by its billionaire owner.

"... the International Bridge Co. has some ideas in the works as well; Stamper has submitted a proposal to the government to use part of the depot as a facility for Homeland Security.

"We want to refurbish just the historic part," Stamper says. "The main entry, main lobby of the depot. The tower would come down."

"We want to refurbish..." sure. What's stopping you?

Translation 'we will let it decay until the tax payers reward us for our neglect."

Transcript can be read here.

"we want to refurbish just the historic part"

Such b.s. No one designates part of a building as historic. A building is good as it is whole. I hope that the entire building is preserved or demolished entirely. A mutilated structure would look ridiculous. Then again so does most of downtown, so I guess maybe this is just another part of the plan.

It will NEVER look as ridiculous as Matty the Troll and his minions appear now...vainly attempting to further his empire in the face of such opposition, the ONLY ones on his side are those who've obviously sold out.

The entire building, waiting room, concourse, tower, and all, is designated on the National and State Historic Registers. Excuse me historian Dan Stamper for jumping on your expertise when you said only the main lobby was historic. I didn't realize you had the credentials to tell us what is historic and what is not.

Plus, isn't the tower portion intergrally tied to the lower portion?

We listened to the story this morning. My wife [[a Washington state native, where we live) asked me for an equivilent to MCS in Seattle, and the only think I could come up with would be if the Smith Tower had been abandoned for 20 years.

I wish there was a simple answer to MCS' problems. But at what point to you realize that nothing is going to happen to save the building and start coming up with alternate plans? At the way it's going, that day is going to come......

How boy; what an idiot. He says it as if the tower was added on in the 90's. lol He probably meant the historically significant part, but that'd still be an incorrect characterization of the structure. The entire thing was built at once, is historical in its entirety because of being built at the same time, and is wholly architecturally significant. But, we've already been over this a hundred times.

if he doesn't have to repair the tower, Matty can just pour concrete over all the dead hobos at the bottom of the elevator shafts.

S a v e t h e d e p o t

I know it's never going to happen. But, it's too bad the DIBC doesn't get along with its Mexicantown/Corktown Neighbors. If the DIBC had people petitioning the General Services Department in favor of the MCD project, as hard as they petition against the second span, Matty would be in business. Being friendly with your neighbors is beneficial.

dexterferry - different building.

Agree that this Stamper fellow is a twit.

how do you know there aren't dead hobos at the bottom of the MCS's elevator shafts?

It is so sad. The building is probably beyond restoration, repair, revival. I would be surprised if it did NOT have structural problems. It could have been saved 10-20 years ago, but really, it is a lost cause.

Swimhaven, sadly I would tend to agree with you. I would love to see that building restored to it's former grandeur but I don't think it is feasible for many reasons, not the least of which is the cost.