Wayne State & New Center Areas-1989 [[Includes Project Screenshots)

[mtburb]

Well, I am going to tell you that I'm currently working on something huge. This project is an attempt to simulate what the area bordered by Grand Boulevard, Lincoln Street, Warren Avenue and Riopelle Street [[including Wayne State and the New Center area) as it appeared on October 2, 1989. This however, will primarily focus on I-94 between I-75 and 3rd Street [[at the eastern end of the M-10 interchange) and the immediate area.

Do you know what inspired this? Recently, I've been looking at several paintings on Lowell's paintings site he did of the Cass Avenue overpass along this stretch in the early 1980's, so that's one. Now, here's an unexpected reason [[even though this had nothing at all to do with Detroit): one day, nearly a month ago, one of the many cable movie networks aired Ghostbusters II, but I only watched it mainly to wait for Bobby Brown's "Take Control" song in the closing. After that, I was looking for a few areas near my home that I could model as if they appeared in 1989, when that movie came out. I eventually settled on that one part of I-94, Lowell's paintings were one reason for that.

And so I started this massive project, using this as a template, which will be mostly accurate, but with some artistic license included. I will be including buses operating every DDOT and SMART route that operated over the overpasses along this part of I-94 as of that date in 1989. However, I know that SMART didn't get it's own buses until a year later, so I've decided to plaster their logo onto ex-SEMTA buses, via the "Red Green treatment". Also included will be every 3M National and Gannett Outdoor billboard in that area that existed back then, with some help from this thread [[which I also started).

And so, an important reason why I've decided to do this project, personally, is so that this could be my personal monument to the closing chapter of the 80's that's known as 1989, known to me as "the only year in which the fall of the Berlin Wall, the opening of I-696, the creation of SMART, the Pistons' first NBA championship, the Red Wings were still dead, the Tigers were still owned by one of Ilitch's competitors, the "GENERAL MOTORS" letters still graced the top of Cadillac Place, movies like Ghostbusters II came out, shows like This is America Charlie Brown and the Smurfs ended and shows like the Simpsons and Tiny Toon Adventures started, all of these preceding events taking place in the exact same year". Yes, you're right, 1989 was the only year that all of this happened.

So, what I'm hoping for with this thread is with you people helping me out with this. Do any of you remember what the area bounded by Grand Boulevard/Lincoln/Warren/Riopelle was like in the fall of '89? For example, I do know that in 1989, there was a gas station at John R. and the westbound I-94 service drive, so I placed a Shell-branded one there, unless you guys knew otherwise. And here are a couple of screenshots of my project [[another one is in that billboard thread I linked to above):







[[that one billboard was inspired by an episode of The Red Green Show, even though that show didn't start until 1991)

[Hamtragedy]

There were two electrical supply houses over on John R or Brush, north of Harper. One of them was Wolverine Electric, the other name escapes me. I know they were both there as of 87. I will jog my memory further as I used to work in the five story apartment building on Woodward btw Lothrop and Bethune, and spent the summer of 87 living in the third floor apartment in front where I could go out on the roof held up by the giant three story columns .

There may also have been giant mosquito nets covering the entire building on the SE corner Woodward /Blvd.

BTW that gas station was a Standard / Amoco not a Shell

[mtburb]

There were two electrical supply houses over on John R or Brush, north of Harper. One of them was Wolverine Electric, the other name escapes me. I know they were both there as of 87. I will jog my memory further as I used to work in the five story apartment building on Woodward btw Lothrop and Bethune, and spent the summer of 87 living in the third floor apartment in front where I could go out on the roof held up by the giant three story columns .

There may also have been giant mosquito nets covering the entire building on the SE corner Woodward /Blvd.

BTW that gas station was a Standard / Amoco not a Shell

Thanks for the notes about that station, as I couldn't tell what it was from either the 1981 nor 1997 DTE aerials nor from the 1999-2007 Google Earth historical images. BTW, was that same apartment building later torn down [[which Lowell documented on the original Fabulous Ruins of Detroit tour) and replaced by an Arbor Drugs [[now CVS Pharmacy)?

[Hamtragedy]

That would be the one. The murphy beds used to fall out the wall in the original five story building. Attached to the rear was another buidling, but part of the same complex. There were 50 units in all along with the rickety old elevator. The paperboy used to get robbed in the basement, seemed like every month. The building was in pretty good shape, but the landlord was holding out for highest dollar while GM was buying most the stuff over there, including the property directly behind the buildings. The building had a few fires in it before it met the wrecking ball and became the CVS

[KJ5]

That's pretty cool, mtburb. Now can you make the Fisher Building & Old Main rise up from the earth with battlements all around them and the opening music from Game of Thrones playing?

[mallory]

Sorry I can't help you. All of the pictures I have of the area are in my head [[WSU student). Still, this sounds really ambitious and I wish you luck on the project.

BTW, for what it's worth, the Bobby Brown song was titled "On Our Own." I'm a music geek so I thought I'd share.

[EastsideAl]

You mean 1989 is no longer recent history? Damn, I've somehow seem to have gotten old.

You'll have to reproduce the Goodyear auto production countdown sign that stood over the Ford-Chrysler interchange.

[DetroitPlanner]

There was no SMART when 1989 began. The buses were still labeled as SEMTA. SEMTA was dissolved that year and SMART began to ramp-up in its place.