Scrolling around google maps, What is This?

[mcsdetroitfriend]

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=10401+...04.82,,0,-1.18

Excuse me if my ignorance is showing

[socks_mahoney]

I believe that would the Detroit Water Works building [[uptake from the river).

[EastsideAl]

Yes, that is the High Lift Pumping Building of the Detroit Water Department. The barbed wire fence in the foreground surrounds the long-closed Waterworks "Park" that was once one of Detroit's most beautiful parks.

More about the building:
http://www.detroit1701.org/Water%20a...nt%20Bldg.html

Waterworks Park in its heyday:

[hamtown mike]

What building are the towers and minarets attached to in the photo of water works park?

[MikeM]

Largest filtration plant in the world when it opened in 1923.

[hamtown mike]

found a great story about water works park. never knew about it.

http://apps.detnews.com/apps/history/index.php?id=207

[animatedmartian]

It's an impressive piece of real estate every time I go by it. The memorial gate along Jefferson is especially cool. Never knew it used to be a park. I thought it was like the water plant on 8 mile and it was just normal to have large empty space in front of it.

[EastsideAl]

My mother has been involved in the fight to reopen Waterworks Park since it was first closed back in 1951. She, my father, my grand-parents, and my great grand-parents had spent a lot of good times there. Back in the '50s the excuse for keeping the park closed was that "communists" may infiltrate our water system, as absurdly Dr. Strangelovian as that sounds. A tiny fenced-in playground area was reopened for several years, but was later closed.

Finally, in 1997, we eastsiders were promised that the park would be mostly reopened. The Hurlbut Gate was refurbished then, but we're still waiting 14 years later on the park. I suppose the reason now is "tearists," but the pumping station is the only part of the park that is still used as part of the water system, and it could easily be isolated while still giving area residents park access to the river again.

[JBMcB]

Thanks for the info, Eastside. I always wondered what was going on there.

In the 90's there was a big donations barometer showing how much money they've accumulated to reopen the park. What happened to that money? Did that just go to sprucing up the gate?

[Scottathew]

Is it just me, or is the barbed wire fence angled the wrong way?

[jackie5275]

found a great story about water works park. never knew about it.

http://apps.detnews.com/apps/history/index.php?id=207

After reading this, I wonder what happened to the floral clock at Greenfield Village. I vaguely remember seeing it when I went there as a kid. However, I've not seen it in quite a while either as the article states it was there until the late 80s. Anyone know what happened to it?

[Planner3357]

Is it just me, or is the barbed wire fence angled the wrong way?

Guess if you need to get off the property you're screwed.

[rencense]

Seems like a shame they have all that fenced off when they only really need to secure a small portion of it. I've always loved those houses on marquette dr. but imagine how nice that street could be if it opened up to a big open park instead of a barb wire fence....maybe someday

[muskie1]

Is it just me, or is the barbed wire fence angled the wrong way?

I don't know the exact rule or law but it has to face that way. I have worked in several places that had to do it this way becuse of liability issues.

[HistoryNotHisStory]

Seems like a shame they have all that fenced off when they only really need to secure a small portion of it. I've always loved those houses on marquette dr. but imagine how nice that street could be if it opened up to a big open park instead of a barb wire fence....maybe someday

There was talks about opening the park back up to the public when they planning the new Water Treatment Plant at the site. However, after September 11, those plans were scraped. You canot have the public within that close of proximity to a Water Treatment Plant.