Groundbreaking midtown medical building. Maybe hammer & nail building staying put?

[JBMcB]

Thanks for bubbling up this thread. I took my son to the DSO for the first time last Saturday and was wondering what the heck was going on across the street. Looks like the new construction is stalled hard - the foundation is flooded which generally indicates a distinct lack of progress. Hopefully they get someone to drain it before it turns into a mosquito breeding ground.

What's going to happen to the hammer and nail sign? Someone should buy it and hang it up on one of the buildings on Campus Martius, make it feel a bit times-square-y.

[1953]

I wonder if those white lasers will actually run on Woodward.

[emu steve]

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/bus...life/83096652/

I found this interesting:

"SEMCOG, the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments, reported that out of a total of 2,738 multifamily units permits issued in Metro Detroit in 2015, the city had the most at 882."

So for apartments, condos, etc. the city of Detroit had 1/3 of the total number of units within Wayne/Oakland/Macomb Counties [[correct?) for which the local governments issued permits.

We're starting to see a market develop in Detroit.

[401don]

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/bus...life/83096652/

I found this interesting:

"SEMCOG, the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments, reported that out of a total of 2,738 multifamily units permits issued in Metro Detroit in 2015, the city had the most at 882."

So for apartments, condos, etc. the city of Detroit had 1/3 of the total number of units within Wayne/Oakland/Macomb Counties [[correct?) for which the local governments issued permits.

We're starting to see a market develop in Detroit.

It's great to see Detroit leading the area but to give some perspective of how stagnant those numbers for metro Detroit are, Toronto had 38,000 units in 2015 out of 70,000 in the metro area.

[gumby]

It's great to see Detroit leading the area but to give some perspective of how stagnant those numbers for metro Detroit are, Toronto had 38,000 units in 2015 out of 70,000 in the metro area.

Apples and oranges. Toronto is a city of 2.6 million people which has not experienced the level of disinvestment that Detroit has. It is Canada's most cosmopolitan city, its NYC this is a very unfair comparison.

[Junjie]

Apples and oranges. Toronto is a city of 2.6 million people which has not experienced the level of disinvestment that Detroit has. It is Canada's most cosmopolitan city, its NYC this is a very unfair comparison.

Agreed. As a point of comparison, here are some census reports for total multifamily units issued permits in each metro area:

Detroit - 2,020 [[not sure why this differs from SEMCOG but my numbers are from census.gov)

Cleveland - 413
Milwaukee - 1,577
St. Louis - 2,290
Minneapolis/St. Paul - 4,927
Washington DC - 10,376
New York City/Newark - 75,646 [[compare to Toronto)

Can't find any data on where in the metro areas these are being built, but the definition used here for "metro area" is a bit more restrictive than some other census measures. E.g. "Detroit" doesn't include Ann Arbor.

[iheartthed]

Apples and oranges. Toronto is a city of 2.6 million people which has not experienced the level of disinvestment that Detroit has. It is Canada's most cosmopolitan city, its NYC this is a very unfair comparison.

Proportionally, more of the development is going into Toronto versus surrounding area than is happening in the Detroit versus Detroit area.

[iheartthed]

New York City/Newark - 75,646 [[compare to Toronto)

This is actually pretty amazing since the NYC area is far larger than Toronto. Toronto is much closer in size to Detroit than it is to New York.

[Gistok]

Apples and oranges. Toronto is a city of 2.6 million people which has not experienced the level of disinvestment that Detroit has. It is Canada's most cosmopolitan city, its NYC this is a very unfair comparison.

Apples and oranges is an apt way to put it. Detroit is still at its' 1926 boundaries, while Toronto has grown to 2.7 million in no small part to continuing to annex outlying areas every decade until 1998.... so in a sense they include what we would call suburbs, while for Detroit, it has just remained the same sized city for 90 years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalgamation_of_Toronto

[emu steve]

Apples and oranges. Toronto is a city of 2.6 million people which has not experienced the level of disinvestment that Detroit has. It is Canada's most cosmopolitan city, its NYC this is a very unfair comparison.

I hate to get into this stuff because it is usually very negative.

Were the problems predictable [[i.e., the loss of its manufacturing base and employment with the growth of technology and globalization) OR was it a case of demographic and business decisions [[i.e., people and businesses fled Detroit for the suburbs)?

Why I phrase the question that way, especially in the context of the reference to Toronto above.

Did Toronto see similar divestment like Detroit [[answered above)?

How about San Francisco? NYC? Washington, D.C.? Chicago?

Why did some large cities survive the challenges and thrive while others declined badly?

Did NYC, SF, D.C., etc. ever lose say 60% of its population [[from highest to lowest point)?

So what is it about Toronto, D.C., etc. that makes it so much different than Detroit?

[SammyS]

I hate to get into this stuff because it is usually very negative.

Were the problems predictable [[i.e., the loss of its manufacturing base and employment with the growth of technology and globalization) OR was it a case of demographic and business decisions [[i.e., people and businesses fled Detroit for the suburbs)?

Why I phrase the question that way, especially in the context of the reference to Toronto above.

Did Toronto see similar divestment like Detroit [[answered above)?

How about San Francisco? NYC? Washington, D.C.? Chicago?

Why did some large cities survive the challenges and thrive while others declined badly?

Did NYC, SF, D.C., etc. ever lose say 60% of its population [[from highest to lowest point)?

So what is it about Toronto, D.C., etc. that makes it so much different than Detroit?

right on. Detroit IS the exception. I have yet to see another city in the world where the wealth, industry and population moved outwards.

[iheartthed]

right on. Detroit IS the exception. I have yet to see another city in the world where the wealth, industry and population moved outwards.

Most major American cities have seen wealth, industry and population move outwards. And some have experienced it to the same degree as Detroit [[St. Louis, Cleveland, etc). The only cities that didn't experience it are Sun Belt cities that grew into major cities in the suburban era.

[emu steve]

right on. Detroit IS the exception. I have yet to see another city in the world where the wealth, industry and population moved outwards.

To answer [[?) my own question:

I believe that more 'white collar' cities did not experience the same amount of out-migration of jobs and population.

'Industrial [[blue collar) cities' seemed to have more problems thriving.

E.g., is Detroit's experience more like Cleveland, St. Louis, Baltimore, etc.?

[gumby]

I hate to get into this stuff because it is usually very negative.

Were the problems predictable [[i.e., the loss of its manufacturing base and employment with the growth of technology and globalization) OR was it a case of demographic and business decisions [[i.e., people and businesses fled Detroit for the suburbs)?

Why I phrase the question that way, especially in the context of the reference to Toronto above.

Did Toronto see similar divestment like Detroit [[answered above)?

How about San Francisco? NYC? Washington, D.C.? Chicago?

Why did some large cities survive the challenges and thrive while others declined badly?

Did NYC, SF, D.C., etc. ever lose say 60% of its population [[from highest to lowest point)?

So what is it about Toronto, D.C., etc. that makes it so much different than Detroit?

Not at all my point. I wasn't talking about how we got here, I was talking about the here and now. I realize there is a whole host of issues as to why we have seen this disinvestment, I was just pointing out that due to our current place in the world it is not fair to compare housing start ups in Canada's most populace city to Detroit which is no longer in the top 10 in the US.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

http://detroit.curbed.com/2016/4/18/...aza-renovation

"Groundbreaking" took place on Friday.

I predict that within a few years, people will come to really appreciate the late mid-century modern vibe of this building and think that it was odd that it almost met the wrecking ball. But then again, I live in Palm Springs and no place embraces mid-century as well as we do.

[ABetterDetroit]

http://detroit.curbed.com/2016/4/18/...aza-renovation

"Groundbreaking" took place on Friday.

I predict that within a few years, people will come to really appreciate the late mid-century modern vibe of this building and think that it was odd that it almost met the wrecking ball. But then again, I live in Palm Springs and no place embraces mid-century as well as we do.

The people that move in the new units will appreciate the incredible views immediately.

[dtowncitylover]

The people that move in the new units will appreciate the incredible views immediately.

Indeed. The building is butt ugly [[it's really hard to imagine it looking luxury at all), but the views will be spectacular!

[emu steve]

Indeed. The building is butt ugly [[it's really hard to imagine it looking luxury at all), but the views will be spectacular!

Glad I'm not the only one who looks at the building and on the OUTSIDE looks ugly.

Some architecture never ceases to amaze me.

[dtowncitylover]

Glad I'm not the only one who looks at the building and on the OUTSIDE looks ugly.

Some architecture never ceases to amaze me.

Channel 7 had those renderings on looking all glitzy, and I'm thinking, "It's lipstick on muddy a pig!" Like it's not some po-mo shit, it truly is an ugly international design building. They need to redo the outside completely to make it look decent.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Channel 7 had those renderings on looking all glitzy, and I'm thinking, "It's lipstick on muddy a pig!" Like it's not some po-mo shit, it truly is an ugly international design building. They need to redo the outside completely to make it look decent.

I think that's similar to what they said when they started all those nice updates on the 1920's buildings, that we all shake our heads in amazement at today.

[emu steve]

Channel 7 had those renderings on looking all glitzy, and I'm thinking, "It's lipstick on muddy a pig!" Like it's not some po-mo shit, it truly is an ugly international design building. They need to redo the outside completely to make it look decent.

Great location, though.

[hybridy]

Channel 7 had those renderings on looking all glitzy, and I'm thinking, "It's lipstick on muddy a pig!" Like it's not some po-mo shit, it truly is an ugly international design building. They need to redo the outside completely to make it look decent.

you're mixing architectural styles and periods. post modernism was the architectural response to the international style

as far as international style mid-highrise buildings locally, i can think of worse.
http://www.michiganmodern.org/buildi...tration-center

[dtowncitylover]

you're mixing architectural styles and periods. post modernism was the architectural response to the international style

as far as international style mid-highrise buildings locally, i can think of worse.
http://www.michiganmodern.org/buildi...tration-center

Oy, that is worse. Looks like someone's imagining of a dystopian Ministry of Information.

I was under the impression that this was an international style building. I did use post-modern wrong, I was thinking deconstructionism.

[hybridy]

Oy, that is worse. Looks like someone's imagining of a dystopian Ministry of Information.

I was under the impression that this was an international style building. I did use post-modern wrong, I was thinking deconstructionism.

you are correct that it's international style

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/m...a_509267_7.pdf

[royce]

Attachment 24484

speaking of this development. i REALLY wish they would continue selden street between the hammer and nail building and those apartments right to the north of them...

this whole block [[Woodward to the west, John R to the east, Mack to the south, and Alexandrine to the north) is the DEFINITION of an unwalkable SUPER block... it's really bad for the areas connectivity and flow. Really hoping the developers are able to work something out with the apartments next door and have selden connect through from woodward to John R [[like the red arrow shows in the pic above)

they definitely have the room and the sidewalk of selden would be right up against the hammer and nail building.. would be really nice idea for the area/block

I agree. That would definitely increase walkability.