Detroit's Architectural Patrimony

[Lorax]

I found this interesting article today in the NY Times, which lays out the French model for economic stimulus, and how their social democratic system of government allows for rapid deployment of funding for job creation, which the French use to constantly maintain their architectural patrimony.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/07/bu..._r=1&th&emc=th

Detroit, and indeed, America could learn from this, and is in fact, something I have been advocating for quite a while now, having spent much time in France over the years.

And France is not alone. Others such as the Belgians, Danish, Swedes, British, Spanish, Germans, etc. have been committed to their architectural patrimony in recent decades, as is evident in the massive renovation projects completed thus far.

Nations need to recongize the assets in front of them. And in Detroit, it is no different. The mentality amongst many unfortunately is that old buildings have a finite life, and are not valued beyond their original intent.

Naturally this is a completely discredited position, since adaptive reuse has been a standard practice in historic preservation for years now.

Our problem in America is entrenched bureaucracy, at state, local, and federal levels. Tax laws that at once favor, then take away incentives to adaptively reuse buildings, when the private sector in many cases does have an interest in doing so.

But principally, in my view, it's the general disregard for the built environment as it relates to our everyday lives that gets in the way of a true reform of the American mindset.

The MCS, Lafayette Building, Cass Tech, Book Tower, and other glaring examples of neglect of our built environment is more a product of how we think, rather than any economic considerations.

The costs of stabilizing, or guarding a building is far less than letting them fall into disrepair and ultimately being ransacked, which in turn ends up costing taxpayers an enormous demolition bill. Lafayette Building as case in point.

Stimulus monies need to be made available for infrastructure, and has been sorely lacking as far as I'm concerned. Bridges, roads, sewers, port improvements, etc. This is one of my chief criticisms of the Obama Administration's stimulus package, as it does not address enough infrastructure needs.

And it needs to go further to include renovation of our public structures.

In the case of listed, municipally owned historic structures in cities across the country, we need to move them to the head of the line when it comes to the receiving end of these funds. Especially the most threatened structures that through their listing are deemed the most historic, most threatened, and best examples of architecture we have.

Examples of this in Detroit would be the cost of the restoration of the Spirit of Detroit, a complete overhaul of Belle Isle and renovation of it's historic structures, a complete renovation/restoration of the Detroit Public Library's branches, restoration of Palmer Park, and development of a master plan based on the shrinking cities initiative, where great swaths of Detroit could be returned to nature, and bordered by new residential development facing these dense wooded settings.

Privately owned structures should have favorable term loan funding available, in addition to tax credits that would render ownership of such structures an asset rather than a liability.

This is a workable situation, when such a model as the French one exists.

I was savaged in a previous thread on spending stimulus monies on a lighting campaign for such historic structures, which I still feel would provide jobs to create such a system, maintain it, and it would create enormous positive press for a city in great need of some.

[Gsgeorge]

Lorax for mayor.

[iheartthed]

I wonder how many jobs would be created if the city had tried to renovate the Lafayette instead of demolishing it?

[Khartoum]

I wonder how many jobs would be created if the city had tried to renovate the Lafayette instead of demolishing it?

Yeah...but think of how many jobs that pocket park will create!

[rb336]

I wonder how many jobs would be created if the city had tried to renovate the Lafayette instead of demolishing it?

not many. Lafayette Tower is getting 4 floors of renovation, though

[EastsideAl]

Oh, we can't have planned economic restructuring or architectural preservation like the French! Oh, the Socialistic horror of it all. Next thing you know, through the connivance of that horrible Socialistic moderate pro-free-trade Democrat in the White House, we may have universal health care and family leave like they do, and that would be just awful.

As for the buildings of Detroit, never forget: Demolition IS progress!! [[particularly if the demolition pays one of the mayor's friends and contributors.) Why have rehabilitation and jobs when you can have more wonderful empty lots. That'll make us a great new city, the envy of the entire country, the Paris of the midwest again!

[Lorax]

Lorax for mayor.

Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I don't qualify, and wouldn't want it.

[Lorax]

Oh, we can't have planned economic restructuring or architectural preservation like the French! Oh, the Socialistic horror of it all. Next thing you know, through the connivance of that horrible Socialistic moderate pro-free-trade Democrat in the White House, we may have universal health care and family leave like they do, and that would be just awful.

As for the buildings of Detroit, never forget: Demolition IS progress!! [[particularly if the demolition pays one of the mayor's friends and contributors.) Why have rehabilitation and jobs when you can have more wonderful empty lots. That'll make us a great new city, the envy of the entire country, the Paris of the midwest again!

I know, I'm just waiting to hear the downside of starting this thread, since I've been a lightning rod for controversy in the past. I think the ideas are solid, and they're not unprecedented.

[Ocean2026]

I agree with you Lorax- the great buildings and nice summers are about all Detroit has going for it, but both should be played up.

[Retroit]

"Indeed, without major changes in government policies, France faces costs that will probably be crippling in the long run. 'We’re insulated from the shocks, but the next generation will pay for it,' Mr. Boulhol warned."

It brings to mind the French Revolution of 1789: While the people of France were suffering, the leaders of France were lavishly spending money on those very buildings that the Socialists of today are restoring at great expense to future generations.

Bring back the guillotine!

Yes, it would be nice to restore all our old buildings. But, oh, how I would love if we could restore the fiscal responsibility of our government!

[Lorax]

Hear! Hear!

I couldn't agree more. It would certainly make restoring our built environment a whole lot easier.

[Gistok]

Good thread Lorax!

Interestingly enough, I just read an article about how after World War II ended... that Germany knocked down twice the number of buildings damaged in the war, than was necessary.

Some nearly wiped out European cities such as Warsaw and Gdansk [[Danzig) completely rebuilt their historic old town section, while many German cities [[Frankfurt, Hamburg, etc.) bulldozed large sections of their old quarters [[even salvagable buildings) so that they could build the Mies Van De Rohe type apartment block abominations that are common in many larger German cities today.

Whenever I take tour buses full of German tourists thru Detroit, they don't much care for Lafayette Park, because it reminds them of the wholesale destruction, and banal redevelopments that replaced the more human scale historic parts of large German cities.

Odd, but true...

Note: Germany's more attractive cities are the midsize and smaller cities that were more sensitive to rebuilding/restoring their medieval areas.

[Lorax]

Thanks Gistok, finding the original article was certainly a breath of fresh air, and sadly, the kind of article found only in the NYT. Detroit's papers need more of this kind of story.

So true about Germany and it's cities, I had the same feeling when I was there. Dresden is a place I would have loved to have seen before WWII, though am encouraged at the restoration of several of it's key buildings in the last few decades.

When I think of the endless architecture destroyed in Berlin, Dresden, Krakow, Warsaw, Kiev, Rotterdam, etc., coupled with the art and antiquities lost during the firestorms of the war, I can only hope that this is a period in our history not to be repeated.

Again, it goes back to mindset. We need to value our built environment, regardless of it's period, and when changes are made, they need to be well thought out.

Those who have advocated for the demolition of the Pontchartrain Hotel and other structures less than 50 years old need to take a step back and think how the same decisions were made in the 1920's, 30's, and in fact throughout our history.

I remember attending the Fisher Building's 50th anniversary party in 1978, held in the lobby. While everyone there was aware of the truly spectacular nature of the building, many were unsure it would survive to see it's hundreth anniversary. I think it will, and people today couldn't even conceive of a Detroit skyline without it.

We need to feel that way about our streetscapes and our secondary buildings as well. Having just a few spectacular examples of what came before isn't enough to preserve the character of the city's architectural fabric.

I have a copy of the amazing head-on photograph of the implosion of Hudson's, which oddly for me, occurred on the day of my mother's funeral. I will always believe Hudson's removal was the greatest mistake made in Detroit's demolition derby.

It represented a social history of the city that transcended race, religion, and social class. It was truly the city's marketplace, where everyone had a story about, or a connection to. It grew, and shrank with the city's fortunes.

It was the architectural equivalent of removing the heart of a barely living patient, and replacing it with nothing.

[Maxine1958]

I have a copy of the amazing head-on photograph of the implosion of Hudson's, which oddly for me, occurred on the day of my mother's funeral. I will always believe Hudson's removal was the greatest mistake made in Detroit's demolition derby.

It represented a social history of the city that transcended race, religion, and social class. It was truly the city's marketplace, where everyone had a story about, or a connection to. It grew, and shrank with the city's fortunes.

It was the architectural equivalent of removing the heart of a barely living patient, and replacing it with nothing.

I think this also was the first example on a grand scale of what happens to a building, abandoned, unguarded and unsecured. And yet we've learned nothing from that devastation. Sad, just sad,

[Retroit]

"It represented a social history of the city that transcended race, religion, and social class."

[[At the risk of once again being labeled a "racist",) I think one of the reasons for the decay and demolition of much of the buildings of Detroit is the disconnect between the original occupants and the current residents. The buildings of Detroit were not built by the ancestors of [[most of) the current residents of Detroit. Many of the ancestors of current Detroiters [[i.e. blacks) were not exactly "welcome" in many of the buildings. Most Detroiters are descendants of southern blacks that were transplanted here in the 40's and 50's, so the buildings of the 1910's or 20's don't mean a whole lot to them, unlike many cities that have retained a good deal of their original - or descendants of the original - occupants.

Compare this to the destruction of Buddhist statues and monuments by the Taliban in Afghanistan, who consider them abhorrent to their beliefs. So maybe monuments to "basic" white capitalistic prosperity are abhorrent to poor Socialistic blacks.

[Lorax]

A fair point, and it makes sense to a degree, but whether it was black or white immigrants, many have a story of someone who was employed there [[blacks were employed there for many decades going back) or shopped there.

Hudsons's carried just about every price point, even as far back as it's founding, and was not considered as elite a store as say, a Himelhoch's or B. Siegel & Company.

Hudson's was also a great steward of the community, often turning their windows into voter registration stations, bond drives during the World Wars, displaying the largest flag on the Woodward side of the store.

They had fine dining restaurants as well as cafeterias. In fact, I recall one elderly black woman years ago telling me that a majority of behind-the-scenes employees were black, and took great pride in working for Hudson's.

Many stayed for 40-50 years when retail was considered a career choice for many. Simpler times that I wish we could return to in some form.

[Gistok]

Interesting points all...

As a movie palace buff, I find that theatre history also had its' darker side [[no pun intended)... many theatres across America had 2nd balconies that were built specifically built to keep blacks separate from the main theatre population. They even had separate stairways [[often on the outside of buildings) and separate refreshments stands, also somtimes outdoors. Most of this occurred in the south, as can be expected.

The only downtown Detroit movie palace that I'm aware of that had a "blacks only" entrance was the 1922 built Capitol Theatre [[today Detroit Opera House). It had a separate [[today hidden) staircase for blacks to get to the back of the balcony seating.

One other point of irony is that being a theatre usher today is considered a "low level" job. But back in the 1920's and 1930's being a theatre usher was considered honorable work with much prestige [[and often rather funny looking uniforms).

Today this tradition is still in place [[although with unpaid vonlunteers)... in the performing arts centers of Detroit.... the Fox, Opera House, Orchestra Hall and Fisher all have volunteers in uniforms who's main perk is to get to sit down and watch the show for free when the patrons are seated and the show begins.