Palazuelo expecting cranes at Packard within the next month

**animatedmartian** · August-20-14, 07:14 AM

Don't be surprised to see Cristni walking around somewhere with a smile on his face and some new clothes, but either way Palazuelo has him out of the way. Cleanup crews are expected to arrive by next month starting with the restoration of the bridge that crosses Grand Boulevard.

http://www.freep.com/article/2014082...lazuelo-update

Not related but other good news is that a commercial rental furniture company moved into the far end of the Packard Plant that's adjacent to I-94. That section is separate from the part of the plant that Palazuelo owns. An interesting point mentioned in the Crain article is that quality industrial space is actually very hard to find within the city. The company was previously going to move to a space in Corktown [[where their original office is), but got outbidded. If Palazuelo can really get Packard cleaned up, chances are it might not be so hard to get a decant amount of tenants.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...-packard-plant

**Hypestyles** · August-20-14, 10:26 AM

so the blackmailer Cristini is finally out of the way? Too bad he couldn't be hit up with criminal charges for his extortion.

**1953** · August-20-14, 10:26 AM

Great news. Here's hoping he can deliver on his promises, as he has so far done.

1953

**ghettopalmetto** · August-21-14, 08:46 AM

But how can this be? Everyone knows that old, obsolete dinosaur buildings like the Packard plant only impede progress. By golly, George Jackson didn't even have a chance to declare the plant "structurally unsound" and spend millions of public dollars on bulldozers to jump-start redevelopment!

On a serious note, this is the kind of work that can be done when you have a committed owner who has vision and perseverance. God bless this man for showing the Downtown Slumlords what a *real* businessman with confidence in Detroit looks like.

**Mackinaw** · August-21-14, 08:51 AM

Amen to that, GP.

**313WX** · August-21-14, 08:54 AM

Let's be honest, before now, was anyone really expecting what this guy is proposing to actually happen with the Packard Plant?

**Gistok** · August-21-14, 09:06 AM

Originally Posted by ghettopalmetto

On a serious note, this is the kind of work that can be done when you have a committed owner who has vision and perseverance. God bless this man for showing the Downtown Slumlords what a *real* businessman with confidence in Detroit looks like.

So you like what downtown building owner Dennis Kefallinos has done with the Russell Industrial Corridor?

I wonder what is in store for the former Michigan Theatre by him?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/0...n_5641301.html

**Mackinaw** · August-21-14, 09:13 AM

Well a distinction must be drawn between slumlords who do things, shoddily, and slumlords who do nothing. Keffalinos v. Sachs. One is much more dangerous to the city than the other.

**ghettopalmetto** · August-21-14, 09:19 AM

Originally Posted by Mackinaw

Well a distinction must be drawn between slumlords who do things, shoddily, and slumlords who do nothing. Keffalinos v. Sachs. One is much more dangerous to the city than the other.

Both types are a detriment to a healthy city.

**motz** · August-21-14, 11:11 AM

Originally Posted by 313WX

Let's be honest, before now, was anyone really expecting what this guy is proposing to actually happen with the Packard Plant?

I have faith that he is going to, at the very least, stabilize the site and work towards eliminating the scrapping. We'll see some progress on the buildings, but it's going to take a while and won't be quite as impressive as he is preaching. However, something is much better than nothing in this situation, he's already shown he operates much differently than the previous owner and other slumlords.

**animatedmartian** · August-21-14, 11:17 AM

Originally Posted by motz

I have faith that he is going to, at the very least, stabilize the site and work towards eliminating the scrapping. We'll see some progress on the buildings, but it's going to take a while and won't be quite as impressive as he is preaching. However, something is much better than nothing in this situation, he's already shown he operates much differently than the previous owner and other slumlords.

According to Channel 7, this is the first time in who knows how long that an owner has been paying taxes on that building.

**DetroiterOnTheWestCoast** · August-21-14, 11:40 AM

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

According to Channel 7, this is the first time in who knows how long that an owner has been paying taxes on that building.

He appears to have promptly paid the taxes once the title issues got cleared up, and the scamming blackmailer low-life Cristini taken out of the picture. And who knows how much he had to pay the blackmailer off. So he now really has some skin in the game and seems to be working in good faith, so I am cautiously optimistic that at least some progress will be made fairly soon.

**royce** · August-22-14, 02:21 AM

Why? Why bother trying to save any part of the Packard building? The top portion of the bridge over Gr. Blvd has collapsed. Why not just tear the whole thing down and build something new. The paying taxes thing is nice but that money could go to someone who really needs a job. That whole side of town from St. Aubin to Van Dyke, I-94 to Forest needs to be decommissioned and fenced off.

The Packard building may be an eyesore but it's in a part of town where everything is an eyesore. Letting it rot for another 50 years is not such a bad thing. It's dilapidation is not as paramount as the train station. MCD is next to a major street and can't be missed from the many vantage points. It needs to be renovated or torn down. The Packard building just needs to be torn down or left to crumble down. Then in 50 years just remove the rubble and build something new. By then the city should be booming and the need for a new city airport should help redevelop that area.

If Palazuelo has this kind of money to spend, he could have spent it on something that impacts Detroiters directly. This endeavor is a waste of time.

**Hermod** · August-22-14, 06:14 AM

Will the cranes that show up have a hook at the end of the lifting cable or a large round ball?

**ghettopalmetto** · August-22-14, 06:39 AM

Originally Posted by royce

Why? Why bother trying to save any part of the Packard building? The top portion of the bridge over Gr. Blvd has collapsed. Why not just tear the whole thing down and build something new. The paying taxes thing is nice but that money could go to someone who really needs a job. That whole side of town from St. Aubin to Van Dyke, I-94 to Forest needs to be decommissioned and fenced off.

The Packard building may be an eyesore but it's in a part of town where everything is an eyesore. Letting it rot for another 50 years is not such a bad thing. It's dilapidation is not as paramount as the train station. MCD is next to a major street and can't be missed from the many vantage points. It needs to be renovated or torn down. The Packard building just needs to be torn down or left to crumble down. Then in 50 years just remove the rubble and build something new. By then the city should be booming and the need for a new city airport should help redevelop that area.

If Palazuelo has this kind of money to spend, he could have spent it on something that impacts Detroiters directly. This endeavor is a waste of time.

So you [[rightly) say that the Packard plant is an eyesore, but then your proferred solution is to do nothing? If Palazuelo thinks he can make money off his investment, why do you begrudge him that?

Do the back taxes paid not directly help Detroiters? Do the new taxes of the completed project not directly help Detroiters? Do the jobs [[and potentially, residences) at a renovated Packard plant not do anything to improve the City of Detroit?

Is it your thought that it's easier to sit and do nothing, rather than take a risk and engage in hard work? The City of Detroit has followed your prescription to a "T", and it hasn't exactly done wonders, has it? People actually want to invest money in the City, and this is seen as a negative? I'm so confused.

**FlyOnTheWall** · August-22-14, 07:30 PM

Originally Posted by ghettopalmetto

Is it your thought that it's easier to sit and do nothing, rather than take a risk and engage in hard work? The City of Detroit has followed your prescription to a "T", and it hasn't exactly done wonders, has it? People actually want to invest money in the City, and this is seen as a negative? I'm so confused.

I too was confused by his post. Thanks for saying what I wanted to. You even said it better than I could. LOL

**Hamtragedy** · August-22-14, 11:18 PM

Sorry, but I don't believe any of this until I see it. And even if a couple cranes do show up, I'm not keeping my fingers crossed till they spend any significant amount of time there.

2.6 M square feet is alot.

**Lowell** · August-23-14, 09:26 AM

Just as an aside, I had a brief encounter with Fernando Palazuela while we both happened to be exiting from lunch at the Traffic Jam yesterday.

After the "Are you...", "Yes I am...", I wished him a 'Bienvenidos a Detroit' [Spanish for Welcome to Detroit] and wished him good luck. He is very congenial and has movie-star good looks.

I was thinking later how he could easily fit into the 'world's most interesting man' ad campaign with his looks and accent, not to mention his ambitions and accomplishments.