Progress on Gilbert Buildings Downtown?

[gthomas]

Great news! I'm so excited about the plans. This summer is going to be a pretty nice one in Detroit, so much going on with new development proposed, planned, conceptual, or coming soon. Right along with winning sports team..can't wait!

Quote from the article:

"We want to do a lot of grass-roots urban retail that you cannot get anywhere else but Detroit; really

remarkable

destinations," said Dan Mullen, Bedrock's acquisition manager. The plans emphasize "small, unique boutiques." That includes a small grocery story. "We are thinking about a cool little market on the east side of 1500 block" of Woodward. The 1500 block of Woodward is near Grand Circus Park. Mullen also said Somerset "is looking to do something down here permanently."There are also plans to utilize the alley behind the east side of 1500 block of Woodward for pedestrian-friendly retail and restaurants, said Bruce Schwartz, Bedrock's Detroit relocation

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...text|FRONTPAGE

[Flintoid]

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...FREE/120309896

Here's about a ten minute video of Dan Gilbert talking at the Ideaetroit conference yesterday about his plans for Downtown, even a picture of the planned Hudson site development.

[Gistok]

I was pleased to see that their Hudson block development, while modern in design.... it appears to retain the streetwall....

[AGinthe313]

Here is a still shot from the presentation...

[dmike76]

That presentation fired me up. We've seen so many people 'plan' to do things in the D, only to see those plans fall through [[Does anyone seriously think the Packard Plant demo will happen?). How can anyone deny that downtown will become great again after seeing this? Gilbert has already proven how serious he his by the work that he's already done. I've had that 'I'll believe it when I see it' attitude before but I have complete faith that this revitalization effort will come to fruition.

[casscorridor]

It looks as if Gilbert is our last ditch effort at any form of rail in the city. Although he does say it will be more of a street car than a light-rail [[something I've argued against many times), I now know this is our best shot.

[begingri]

Here is a view from the front from the same video.

[webband1]

definitely laughed when I saw the giant iPad ad on the side of the mock-up.... Really gives it that realistic look!

[southen]

how many floors of parking does the hudson site already have? isnt it overkill to add 12 floors of parking below the residential units when you have the compuware garage and 1001 garage [[where the cvs is) all one block away. i understand parking is important, but i think a building that is 2/3s garage on that site is a mistake. perhaps im wrong though.

[Detroit68]

Could that be a not-so-subtle hint of Gilbert being able to draw Apple to the "Webward" corridor as long rumored? What better anchor than an Apple store? Maybe something like the block long store proposed for Portland -

http://www.ifoapplestore.com/db/2012...-for-portland/

[401don]

how many floors of parking does the hudson site already have? isnt it overkill to add 12 floors of parking below the residential units when you have the compuware garage and 1001 garage [[where the cvs is) all one block away. i understand parking is important, but i think a building that is 2/3s garage on that site is a mistake. perhaps im wrong though.

Totally agree. It makes me think he wants the existing underground parking for office tenants in his other buildings and/or upcoming retail.

[canuck]

I agree wit southen and 401don on the senselessness of another multistory garage and little else for that block. I was happily surprised that retail on that block entails reshaping existing bldgs as some of the sketches show. It sure is cool that there is something happening on the retail buzz front. The presentation style was not too impressive though. I think Gilbert needs to show more refinement in that area. He needs to attract folks outside Detroit and the buzz needs to be laser sharp in the years to come.

[canuck]

Does this project have anything to excite or entice? Is it just more of the same old car-centric refrain that reduces Detroit's ability to attract invention. To me, this talk of a parking garage in a major percentage of a mixed use building is a shallow interpretation of the people's need for freshness and enthusiastic projection. There is a bit of reflection on the importance of retail on street level needing to be coaxed in the older buildings on Woodward but in what way? it is still nebulous. Is there any way the Hudson's site could be used in a more emblematic way?

I think Gilbert and his acolytes would do well to reconvene with some savvy designers and planners to find the right project for an important property in such a central location.

I dont see much enthusiasm for the project on this thread. I think there is probably a more enthusiastic response from folks on Detroityes for older skyscraper rehabs that have happened than for entirely new projects like the Cobo hall additions. I sense people in Detroit are probably not going to fall head over heels for a newer parking structure that might at best facilitate retail reestablishment in the downtown.

Maybe a better message would be to stop promoting car enabling structures in spite of the paucity of transit offer. There seems to be a withdrawal symptom type of behavior here on the developer's part. Go back to the drawing board please, mr Gilbert. And insist on promoting transit related proposals for the future of the region, in other words, make the powers that be understand the value of a united metro.

[gthomas]

The end goal, he said, is to have one large plan to have all of the retail developed under one master plan. According to Dan Gilbert's Webward concepts: http://www.hobbs-black.com/studios/r...ek-center.html

Here's a plan I'll like to see on Woodward, the surface parking lot across from the Fox Theater and the lot between both the Fillmore and Fox Theater. Check out the second and third picture, imagine the skywalk over Woodward Av from the Comerica Park surface parking lot, across to the area between the two theaters leading to all that space behind the Fox Theater. That's a plan Illitch need to discuss with Dan Gilbert to connect his retail plans with hopes for Illitch's new arena soon.

[southen]

when hudsons was hopping year ago there wasnt parking incorporated into the site, yet people found ways to get there. as it stands right now there is more parking there then ever before and you have the adjacent garages that people can use. im sure he could even put some sort of pedestrian bridge in from the compuware garage if he wanted. if he is a true backer in light rail on woodward the design of this building should reflect that. utilize the existing garages and utilize the woodward lightrail line that your paying a pretty penny for. the more i think about it the more disappointed i am in her vision for the site. it needs to be more forward thinking and innovative.

[canuck]

when hudsons was hopping year ago there wasnt parking incorporated into the site, yet people found ways to get there. as it stands right now there is more parking there then ever before and you have the adjacent garages that people can use. im sure he could even put some sort of pedestrian bridge in from the compuware garage if he wanted. if he is a true backer in light rail on woodward the design of this building should reflect that. utilize the existing garages and utilize the woodward lightrail line that your paying a pretty penny for. the more i think about it the more disappointed i am in her vision for the site. it needs to be more forward thinking and innovative.

One can imagine how a streetcar loop would go through the Hudson block proposed building instead of a parking above ground level. Sure, use the underground lot as a parking garage for cars but the ground level as a hub or a node for rail. The People Mover could also have a station through part of the structure and include the Spillman library building on the corner of Farmer and Gratiot. I just dont get the added parking with what already exists in the vicinity.

I think the Wings arena could be built on the fromer Hudson's site and spill onto Farmer street effectively doing away with Farmer street to stop at Library street. The Hudson building footprint was 92,000 sq ft. A new arena could be the size of the Bell Centre in Montreal [[168,000 sq ft) by spilling onto a smaller relatively unimportant street.

If you take in the view from Grand River and Library/Farmer streets merge
there is ample space for this development to occur which would bring more retail potential and human activity for concert nights year round as well as hockey/basketball if the Pistons need to move downtown.

[Gistok]

Canuck... I don't like any plan that tampers with the actually built 1806 Woodward Plan of streets downtown. Closing Farmer would do just that.

Besides I doubt that the existing underground Woodward parking would be able to hold an Arena on top without having to dig it all up and start all over.

And besides... a new arena belongs up in the entertainment district, not down in the financial district.

[canuck]

Canuck... I don't like any plan that tampers with the actually built 1806 Woodward Plan of streets downtown. Closing Farmer would do just that.

Besides I doubt that the existing underground Woodward parking would be able to hold an Arena on top without having to dig it all up and start all over.

And besides... a new arena belongs up in the entertainment district, not down in the financial district.

Fair enough Gistok, at least we can agree on the need to do without so much parking. But remember, cities evolve and need to have plenty of rules rewritten in order for new functions to happen. If the goal is to regain human activity that goes beyond the 9 to 5, it may be worthwhile fooling with the pre-ordained use of a district and discover hidden possibilities.

If the underground structure can hold a 23 story masonry and steel tower, I suppose an arena could work[[?)

But the idea of providing grounds for an existing entertainment district is good as you say.

[Jason]

The structural requirements of an arena are different though, since all of the weight needs to be carried around the edge. The columns that are there now are for more typical office/residential floors.


I think the Hudsons site is a hard one to design for. You need to respect the street wall/beaux arts urban form, which points towards a big box. But that box would be too wide for natural daylighting to reach the middle. The big box form would also have scale problems because you need to transition between the tall and blocky Compuware Building and the shorter, smaller scaled buildings on Woodward, and then in the back you have to respect the small library. And then with 12 floors of parking it would be even harder to have a good sense of scale no matter what you do with the rest of the design.

[gthomas]

Gilbert does have two vacant site with no building that he has, beside the planned Woodward Block, The "Statler and Monroe" Site. He did mention recently, he's building new in 2013 regardless, most of his properties Downtown will be fully leased for his sister companies and others. Gilbert's is an innovative, creative-type of guy and it reflect through his work and style. This can be something nice to build for one of his sister companies to locate to or for Quicken Loans Headquarters, just a little bit taller, like 40-50 story.

[gthomas]

Quote: Toyota announced they are moving their NA headquarters to Detroit.

This can be an option, my point is : Be creative, innovative, technology-driven, design savvy..etc. So tired of boring building being built, so-called urban design, pre-fab bull-crap. Build something exciting, different, mind-blowing..

[gthomas]

The best design Apple Store that I have visited: Take notes Detroit.

[GUSHI]

This is detroit, how long before a stolen Monte Carlo or ford pick up go through the window, lol

The best design Apple Store that I have visited: Take notes Detroit.

[mikeg19]

Now if we could only convince him to buy the Wurlitzer.....

[rb336]

The best design Apple Store that I have visited: Take notes Detroit.

looks just like the fish tank I had in 8th grade