new hotels in Detroit

It seems Detroit's hotel business in on a roll.
Even though we have lost several great hotels , it seems we've been on a building boom lately.
With the MGM,Greektown, Motorcity, Book Cadillac, and the David Whitney.
And several new on the way, The old fire station,Shinola, the hotel at the new red wings area and the newly mention West elm.
It seems Detroit's tourist and boutique hotel business is really picking up.
Is Detroit becoming more of a tourist town ?
http://www.detroitnews.com/story/bus...-elm/91124326/

List of hotels in Downtown, Corktown and Midtown

Current

Downtown:
Marriott at the Renaissiance Center
Aloft at the David Whitney
DoubleTree at Fort Shelby
Westin Book-Cadillac
Holiday Inn Express on Washington
Greektown Casino
MGM Grand Casino
Atheneum Greektown
Hilton Garden Inn on Gratiot
Courtyard on Jefferson
Crowne Plaza [[potential second tower in the works)

Corktown:
Trumbull and Porter
Motor City [[North Corktown/Arena District)

Midtown/New Center:
Inn on Ferry St.
Hotel St. Regis
El Moore


Upcoming

Downtown:
Foundation Hotel [[Old Fire HQ)
Shinola Boutique
Red Wings Arena Hotel
Wurlitzer Boutique
Harmonie Club Hotel

Midtown:
West Elm


Feel free to add more if I forgot any off the top of my head.

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A boutique hotel is part of the vision for a downtown area being renamed the Paradise Valley Cultural and Entertainment District. The district would highlight African-American arts and businesses. The hotel is planned for what’s now the Carr Center at 311 E. Grand River. The 25- to 30-room hotel is tentatively called the Harmonie Club Hotel.

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Hm, I wonder when this project will begin construction. I know that building has an abandoned theater at the upper levels.

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Originally Posted by Zads07

Midtown:
West Elm

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per Curbed: the West Elm is a reboot of a previously announced project:
http://detroit.curbed.com/2013/11/22...pment-revealed

Element at the Metropolitan is also on the way to downtown.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hypestyles

Hm, I wonder when this project will begin construction. I know that building has an abandoned theater at the upper levels.

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Actually, the Carr Center folks have been using the old Harmonie Club building and putting on shows there for a few years now. Despite the hotel plans, it looks like they will be continuing on in that building this fall and winter too.

Their website shows several art shows, plays, operas, etc. there beginning this month. And starting in October a really excellent series of jazz shows curated by their new artistic director, the great Detroit-raised pianist Geri Allen, with significant involvement from bassist Rodney Whitaker's MSU jazz program.

Schedule:
http://www.thecarrcenter.org/events

Thanks for the informative posting. In some loose sense, these new hotels are linked to
the renovation of Cobo and the rise in employment in downtown.

More hotel news.

I didn't know they only did half the rooms, but it sounds like things are going well.

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A Corktown hotel has received a $7.85 million construction loan to complete renovations.

Birmingham-based Q10| Lutz Financial Services closed on the financing with Cinnaire for the Trumbull & Porter at 1331 Trumbull Ave. in Detroit to complete work on the 144 rooms, a full-service restaurant, a private dining area and an outdoor bar.

Construction is to begin this week and the hotel is expected to be fully open before the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January.

Formerly known as the Corktown Inn, the hotel was purchased by an investment group more than a year ago for $2.7 million. This is the second construction loan closed by Q10| Lutz to help build the hotel; the first was a $5 million construction loan from Kansas City, Mo.-based NCN Lending to start building.

Michael Schick, director of Q10| Lutz, said it was difficult to find backing for the project because earlier the hotel was underperforming.

"It was running about 30 percent occupancy at a room rate between $40 and $60 a night prior to acquisition," Schick said. "Post-acquisition, once they renovated, they are getting the room rates they expected and occupancy on the rooms that are open is more in line with what the market is right now, close to 68-74 percent occupancy

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http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...te-renovations

Question. Is the Holiday Inn Express the old Howard Johnson Motor Lodge from the '60's? I

Yes it sure is. Most recent update was for super bowl. I was in there around 07. Still has indoor rooftop pool

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Originally Posted by MSUguy

More hotel news.

I didn't know they only did half the rooms, but it sounds like things are going well.



http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...te-renovations

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This place is safe, secure? It was "notorious" for years.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by EastsideAl

Actually, the Carr Center folks have been using the old Harmonie Club building and putting on shows there for a few years now. Despite the hotel plans, it looks like they will be continuing on in that building this fall and winter too.

Their website shows several art shows, plays, operas, etc. there beginning this month. And starting in October a really excellent series of jazz shows curated by their new artistic director, the great Detroit-raised pianist Geri Allen, with significant involvement from bassist Rodney Whitaker's MSU jazz program.

Schedule:
http://www.thecarrcenter.org/events

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Live art[[s) and culture venues as described are appealing and should draw overnights. Sounds interesting.

Yes, actual tourism is a real thing in Detroit now. Not just business travelers & conventioneers. People come to town to see art, eat in hip restaurants, go to a show. Even locals from SE Michigan come to town for the weekend. There is stuff to do, and people are coming to do it.

Another story on topic:

http://www.freep.com/story/travel/20...ates/92367642/

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Originally Posted by ABetterDetroit

Another story on topic:

http://www.freep.com/story/travel/20...ates/92367642/

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I think this article is further evidence of what I have been saying: Detroit will be 'saved' or rebuilt from the 'inside out' or from the downtown out to the neighborhoods.

I like the reference to 'trendy'.

But in all honesty, when folks describe a city they are usually referring to the downtown area or sports and entertainment areas. In all honesty, are visitors interested in neighborhoods 5 or 10 miles from the downtown?

Conventioners want a vibrant downtown where they can eat, drink, maybe catch a baseball game, walk, sightsee, etc.

The worst thing about a downtown is one which closes up at 5:00 p.m. when the workers go home.

That is why having people live downtown, sports and entertainment, etc. is so important.

^^
No one cares for anything outside the immediate downtown for now. No worries. What areas outside of downtown should worry about is a rotten core which we are slowly bringing back to life. Once saturated, the good vibes will rapidly radiate out as we have already seen with New Center

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The worst thing about a downtown is one which closes up at 5:00 p.m. when the workers go home.

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That was downtown Detroit for me back in 1979, when I moved back from LA with a week in downtown Chicago first. I wandered empty streets at 6pm weekdays, wondering what post apocalyptic scenario I was in, while I stayed a few days at the great Holiday Inn with garbage, flies and food trays in the hallways :eek:.