What would your Lafayette Building Redevelopment plan be?

[urbanoutdoors]

I am sure there are alot of theories on what the redevelopment could be. Lets hear em....
My Plan would be something that I believe would help build new infrastucture in the city while also creating a for jobs and tourism that could be implimented all around town..
Step one: Job training:
Thousands of Detroiters are without work and are willing to train to prepare for new careers. As a result I propose a new jobs program should be designed for green renovation of existing structures. This would be implimented by having leading green and renovation experts come together to train Detroits new green workforce.
Step two: Green Build
The city allows Buildings such as the Lafayette to be used as such training facilities with a workforce in training that will learn how to make the Lafayette Detroits premier renovated green building. This work will be done in conjunction with the US Green Bulding Council to achieve LEED Certification. Solar pannels and a living roof will be installed. Low VOC paint and appropriate green material will be used for flooring the and the entire building will be retro fitted with the most energy efficient appliances possible. Also a feasability study will be done on the possibility of adding a geothermal heating and cooling system.
Step 3: USE
Bottom floor retail would be marketed at feasible discounted rates to make it possible for a major anchor such as Trader Joe's to come in and provide for an attractive retail climate. Once established the new Green Jobs Detroit will opperate out of its Lafayette building campus which will allow for opportunities for education. Along with incentives for 501C3's and other Green Jobs to be created and opperated from this HUB. There is also a market for green living which would allow a portion of the building to be new green condo's which wouldhave all the green ameneties such as energy efficient appliances and low flow faucets.

Step Four: Education of the Public
Tours of the building could allow for education of the general public who could now see the benefits of green renovation first hand. It is one thing to just see the renovation but the building will go a step further with open finances and interactive displays of how much money rebuilding green has saved in the long run thus giving more justification to why everyone should build green.

These are just some rough 3:30AM Ideas feel free to critique and add to mine or suggest something completely different.

[Irvine Laird]

Urban Outdoors, the Lafayette Building already has trees growing on its roof. That ought to count for something with the LEED certifiers.

Thank you for your ideas. I like constructive thoughts like yours.

My organization recently worked with a Bloomfield Hills architect to complete a home we believe will qualify for platinum LEED certification in Pontiac. I believe in "green" building, if not for environmental stewardship, for the cost savings in energy and materials. It is just the right way to build.

The problem that appears insurmountable to me is the market does not support the millions of vacant square feet of office space in the region. We simply have too many buildings and not enough tenants to fill them.

This is a regional problem, but is especially acute in Detroit's business district and could grow worse depending on whether General Motors discovers its destiny or faces its fate. I heard from someone in the know that EDS may move its remaining personnel out of the Renaissance Center and out to Centerpoint in Pontiac. Quicken won't budge from Livonia until the economy gets better.

In other words, the problem could get worse before it gets better.

I delight in the daydream of a LEED-certified Lafayette Building and a repuation for innovation and leadership in Detroit. However, I don't see an economy that will fill the Lafayette Building with enough tenants to make it a good business proposition.

I'm not in favor of demolition, but the odds are against the Lafayette Building. I look forward to reading more ideas and opinions.

[Lorax]

There is certainly a future for the Lafayette Building if those in charge give it a chance. Your ideas for LEED certification shouldn't be considered a dream, but a very real possibility.

From a dollars and cents point of view, mothballing the structure is far less expensive and more proactive approach than demolition. Demolition is a lose/lose proposition. Time for marketing a renovated LB is gained by stabilization. The key is steady pressure to make it happen. Services for the Book Cadillac as well as any future condominium developments in the area make the Lafayette ideally suited for renovation.

Why can't the structure be stabilized while redevelopment of the retail component take place?

If the lower couple of floor are made viable while mothballing the upper floors, a less expensive option is created for bringing the LB back online. I think an uninterupted line of storefronts, including the existing Coney Islands benefits the entire neighborhood. I can't imagine the Book's owners preferring an empty lot over this scenario.

[urbanoutdoors]

thanks Lorax, I think that it can still be used as a viable building and would like to see reuse happen no matter what for it may come in...

[Russix]

Fix up the indoor mall, divide up the middle floors for potential office space, and divide up the upper floors as lofts. I'm not familiar with how the elevators are configured, but some arrangement where the commercial floors’ elevators are separated from the residential would provide more security for the residents and a more professional atmosphere for the businesses. Clean everything out and sell units out at competitive pricing as raw lofts[[tenant renovates) with maintenance fees. The building can fill up more quickly and each unit can be individually developed to either be lived in or resold. There will always be some people who want to live in a luxury hotel, and some who prefer DIY living quarters.

[Gsgeorge]

Russix, fantastic ideas. That downstairs mall space is a huge asset. I am not sure how the building was originally configured, but the skylight & light well are irreplaceable. Just look at the Dime Building to see why this type of downtairs mall space is so cool. Great open atmosphere for shopping or relaxing, at all times of the year. Imagine a grocery store, or multiple shops -- a lot of possibilities with that space/spaces.

[Andrew in Windsor]

A parking lot. There is next to nowhere to park downtown....

[Huggybear]

If the lower couple of floor are made viable while mothballing the upper floors, a less expensive option is created for bringing the LB back online.

I can see from the Book and Broderick that first floor occupancy does not require work on the upper floors of a building - but what happens under code when a building becomes completely unoccupied?

I would be concerned that once you lose your "grandfathering," you would have to do a lot more work to the other floors of the building [[structurally sound fire escapes, sprinklers, maybe electricity, etc.) to get a certificate of occupancy. And what of elevators [[for ADA), mechanical systems, and roofing required to make the first couple of floors work?

I think you would need to have something that pays rent in the upper floors to economically justify doing anything with the bottom ones - even if it's just artists lofts renting at a sub-market rate.

[gnome]

UrbanOutdoors,

I think you might be on to a couple of things. Using the Lafayette as a training facility for green rehabbers is an interesting idea. If the city could tap into State and Federal re-training dollars, we could develop a workforce trained in LEED construction/rehab. Moreover, once the building is rehabbed the training workforce could move on to another building in need of rehabbing. There are certainly enough city-owned eyesores around tokeep people busy for years.

Essentially this would a series of rehabbed LEED buildings along with a trained workforce.

[Rocko]

Surprised no one posted this - from Crains Detroit dated April 3. You be the judge:

Quote:
Jackson defends DEGC track record on historic preservation

By Nancy Kaffer

George Jackson is fighting back.

Following weeks of criticism after a Downtown Development Authority decision to raze the long-abandoned Lafayette Building, a petition drive and a pledge by Detroit Mayor Ken Cockrel Jr. to re-evaluate the demolition decision, the Detroit Economic Growth Corp.'s CEO has issued a fiery statement defending the DEGC’s historic preservation track record.

“Compare our scorecard to the ‘successes’ of these self-described ‘preservationists’ and it becomes very clear who is actually saving buildings, and who is simply generating noise,� Jackson wrote.

The DEGC has worked to preserve and protect 130 historic buildings, he wrote, including the Detroit Opera House, the Fort Shelby Hotel, the Kales Building and the Westin Book Cadillac, and has demolished two long-vacant city-owned buildings and part of Tiger Stadium in the last four years, while funding the demolition of 11 privately owned, blighted structures.

The Lafayette Building is a no-go for redevelopment — the DEGC’s been working to redevelop the Lafayette since Jackson’s arrival in 2003, he wrote, with no success.

“The Ferchill Group, a Cleveland-based developer that specializes in historic redevelopment projects and who redeveloped the Book Cadillac building, took a long look at it and declined, saying ‘the economics weren’t even close,’� Jackson wrote.

“The reality is the building is badly deteriorated. It has structural issues. The efficiency of the floor plan is problematic. In short, the costs of rehabilitating it are just too great to allow a viable business plan.�

And the Lafayette isn’t safe, he wrote.

“At the same time, pieces of the building are falling to the ground, creating a hazard for pedestrians,� Jackson wrote.

The DEGC worked to save the Book for six years, Jackson said.

“So it should be no surprise that I’m bothered by the strident claims of a small group of individuals who continually whine that the DEGC has no sense of history,� he wrote. “Or worse, that we are involved in some kind of ‘conspiracy’ to rob Detroiters of their vintage buildings. With loud voices and well-placed calls to reporters, they always get good coverage whenever a blighted structure must be demolished — either for the safety of the community or the potential for redevelopment.�

Jackson closed with suggestions for those who want to preserve old buildings: “Patronize businesses that are in vintage buildings. Each time a restoration generates profits, it raises the chances for another one,� he wrote. “Don’t complain. Recruit investors and developers and help us match them with businesses willing to pre-buy or pre-lease space. Put skin in the game, not just talk.�

Also key, he said, is advocacy for better laws and more stringent enforcement of existing blight-fighting tools.

“Spend time going after bad property owners, instead of vilifying organizations that actually do preservation, such as DEGC and the city of Detroit,� he wrote.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...FREE/904039972

[scuola]

UrbanOutdoors,

I think you might be on to a couple of things. Using the Lafayette as a training facility for green rehabbers is an interesting idea. If the city could tap into State and Federal re-training dollars, we could develop a workforce trained in LEED construction/rehab. Moreover, once the building is rehabbed the training workforce could move on to another building in need of rehabbing. There are certainly enough city-owned eyesores around tokeep people busy for years.

Essentially this would a series of rehabbed LEED buildings along with a trained workforce.

We need "green rehabbers?" We already have people to do that--they're called carpenters, electricians, plumbers, landscapers. In fact, they have trade unions and continuing education programs to help them with the "green" details. But it's not rocket science. An electrician doesn't require an advanced degree to connect a solar panel. They'll learn when the demand is there for solar panels. And with the collapse in homebuilding, there are plenty of them available to do the green building you want. Problem is, what good is it to do a green building if nobody is there to buy it or lease space in it? Green building, green education, green everything requires another kind of green before anything happens--dollars.

That being said, I like ideas--so here is mine:

I think the city should contact regional universities, or even University of Detroit Mercy to see if they are still interested in opening a downtown campus. I know at one time UDM wanted to create a mixed use high rise on their parking lot across from their law school. If the school could raise the funds for that, then maybe Detroit could offer up the Lafayette building for free. Short of that, I think we have to invest in mothballing it. Board it up, preserve it. Green or not, we just don't build anything like we used to...let's keep what we got.

[K-slice]

A parking lot. There is next to nowhere to park downtown....

How is there nowhere to park downtown??? I parked right next to the Hard Rock Cafe on like Tuesday this week, and that wasn't the only spot. Plus the street spots by AT&T are always open. There is way too much parking if anyhting..

Demolition is never a good idea unless there's something to replace it. That's really not what we want right accross from the big new BC, an empty dirt or cement lot. To really know how to redevelop this you'd need to know what it's like in there now. What the current floor plan is and how much can it be changed to fit new things. I really hope this building can be saved.

[E hemingway]

I think Andrew was being sarcastic.

[Gistok]

“Spend time going after bad property owners, instead of vilifying organizations that actually do preservation, such as DEGC and the city of Detroit,� he wrote.

Did anyone notify Mr. Jackson that this was a city government responsibility?

[Rocko]

There are nearly new parking garages on two sides of this building , how convenient!

[Lorax]

Huggybear, you have a point, however, perhaps only the ground floor needs to be renovated and leased at below market rates to get a semblance of being occupied, while the funds for mothballing are used to clean out the upper floors, stabilize the roof, etc. The only utilities needed would be on the first floor. A variance can be obtained for just the first floor. ADA requuirements would be limited to the first floor [[access/egress, bathrooms, etc.)

It's been done in other cities, even here in Miami.