David Stott building sold to undisclosed bidder for $8.95 million

[begingri]

The winning bid appeared to narrowly meet the property’s undisclosed auction reserve price, or minimum bid for a sale.

On Wednesday, the old Detroit Free Press Building, 321 W. Lafayette, also sold at online auction for just over $4 million. The identity of its winner bidder is also a mystery for now.

Both buildings were owned and put up for auction by Florida-based Luke Investments, headed by investor Emre Uralli. The investment group has said it once nearly had a development deal for the David Stott, but the deal fell through.

The David Stott building is a reddish-orange brick Art Deco tower designed by Donaldson and Meier and opened in 1929. It was said to capture the modernist, streamlined ideal of famed architect Eliel Saarinen’s unbuilt Chicago Tribune skyscraper proposal of the 1920s.

Today the building is 80%-85% vacant. Its most popular current tenant, Skybar Lounge, is on the first and 33rd floors and, along with other David Stott occupants, is expected to stick around with the building’s new owner. The 33rd floor was once home to radio station WABX-FM.

http://www.freep.com/article/2013091...old-at-auction

[canuck]

Excellent news for Detroit, two in a week. The intrinsic value of these buildings is way higher, but developers are somewhat more prone to devising projects these days in downtown bldgs. I like the way this one scrapes the sky.

[gnome]

Does anyone know who David Stott was and why there is a building named for him. I assume he wasn't a WABX AirAce.

[davewindsor]

Does anyone know who David Stott was and why there is a building named for him. I assume he wasn't a WABX AirAce.

David Stott founded the David Stott Flour Mills in Detroit in 1879. In 1916, he passed away and left his $10m estate to seven children, one being David Stott Jr, who speculated in real estate and built the David Stott Tower in 1929.

[Hypestyles]

hmm.. why the 33rd floor? what's up there that they can't put on the 1st?

[gnome]

David Stott founded the David Stott Flour Mills in Detroit in 1879. In 1916, he passed away and left his $10m estate to seven children, one being David Stott Jr, who speculated in real estate and built the David Stott Tower in 1929.

thank you ... 1929 sure seems like bad timing to speculate in real estate.

[Gistok]

Detroit Theatre mogul John Kunsky [[owner of the Madison, Adams, Capitol, State, Michigan and many other theatres) had good timing.... he sold his theatre chain at the peak of the good times in mid 1929. He invested his money in radio broadcasting... and weathered the depression without financial woes.

[Spartan]

hmm.. why the 33rd floor? what's up there that they can't put on the 1st?

A birds-eye view of the city

[preserve]

A beautiful view of the City in a different atmosphere, hope the new owners plan on keeping it.

[Bobl]

Does anyone know who David Stott was and why there is a building named for him. I assume he wasn't a WABX AirAce.

Certainly not one particular Air Ace, who once sailed numerous vinyl discs out of the building one regrettable day.

[Gistok]

Certainly not one particular Air Ace, who once sailed numerous vinyl discs out of the building one regrettable day.

Ouch... that sounds like it could be worse than a paper cut if one were in the way of the gravitational pull of one or more of those discs...