Little Caesars to Build 8 Story Downtown HQ

[emu steve]

Yeaaaah....... it's kind of odd that you question my other post about what is appropriate this thread [[that you didn't even start).... when you asked this question... which I was alluding to.....

I can answer my own question:

1). Arena,

2). Ilitch School of Business Building [[ground broken last month)

3). LC headquarters [[ground breaking pending).

For the purpose of this 'exercise' I'm not counting parking garages.

[downtownguy]

I can answer my own question:

1). Arena,

2). Ilitch School of Business Building [[ground broken last month)

3). LC headquarters [[ground breaking pending).

For the purpose of this 'exercise' I'm not counting parking garages.

Why the bug up your butt? Didn't you ask someone to post a pic of the garage construction for you? What's wrong? Didn't you get your free Pizza!Pizza! from the Ilitch organization today?

Wonder if someone could get a photo of the new parking garage going up [[right?) behind St. Johns Church? Thanks.

[downtownguy]

Also... as much as I would like to see a pair of 6 story residences across the street from this new building.... I think that Grand Circus Park should be a bigger concern for them. What's more important... taking a pair of dilapidated buildings [[U/A & Fine Arts) and bringing them back to life? .... or taking probably their best landscaped parking lots [[many of theirs are gravel) and finally putting something on to them? I think the first option would be of greater value to downtown revitalization versus the apartments, although I'm sure that's not the way this will go.

I agree completely that Grand Circus Park should be the priority.

As for the parking lots, let's not forget that they just followed the lead of Chuck Forbes, who, when he owned those lots, took great pride in landscaping them.

[Detroit]

Good. They aren't making any moves on the Blenheim Bldg, right?

I was told that after all the hassle it took to tear down the old hotel on the arena site, they never even attempted to ask the city about tearing it down. Also, not sure if anyone has seen the District Detroit experience at CoPa but the Detroit Life Building and the Blenheim buildings are in the planned district. I took pictures of the District Display but I just don't know where I saved them to right now.

[gumby]

I was told that after all the hassle it took to tear down the old hotel on the arena site, they never even attempted to ask the city about tearing it down. Also, not sure if anyone has seen the District Detroit experience at CoPa but the Detroit Life Building and the Blenheim buildings are in the planned district. I took pictures of the District Display but I just don't know where I saved them to right now.

Is the general public allowed to go to the District Detroit office at Comerica. I would love to see it but I heard it was only for season ticket holders.

[ekleezy]

I just drove by today. Ground has actually been broken now.

[SpartanDawg]

Ground has absolutely been broken. There is scaffolding up against woodward and all the asphalt has been dug up on the site, and there are multiple caterpillars on the site now as well. But in case anyone wanted confirmation:

http://www.freep.com/story/money/bus...pjjr/89597280/

"Today, the firm has designed the Mike Ilitch School of Business for Wayne State University and the Little Caesars new headquarters building near the Fox Theatre that will break ground this week. The projects should inject a spirited shot of contemporary design into Detroit’s cityscape."


Seems like they will hold a ceremony of some kind this week, although ground has already been broken

[Gistok]

Well I have to say that I like the carport roof on the WSU Business School a lot more than the carport roof on the Little Caesar's Building. But question... what function do these serve?

[MSUguy]

150 million for a 230,000 square foot building? That's over $600 sq. ft that can't be right.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...oreUserAgent=1

[Atticus]

150 million for a 230,000 square foot building? That over $600 sq. ft that can't be right.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...oreUserAgent=1

They have to get to the $1.2 billion investment figure for the Arena District somehow. $150m puts a nice dent into that. Maybe they are paying themselves back indirectly to boost the cost figure. Still, very glad to see this development happen.

[hybridy]

150 million for a 230,000 square foot building? That's over $600 sq. ft that can't be right.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...oreUserAgent=1

That's likely 'total project cost' which include the building, site work, and renovations to existing space + skybridge. Then add in all soft costs...furniture, equipment, permits and fees. Actually building cost is 30-35% less.

[1953]

Why the architectural firm that brought us the Penobscot, Guardian, and Buhl would bring us the rubbish that will go into the Little Caesars headquarters and WSU School of Business is beyond me. What a fall from grace.

1953

[dtowncitylover]

Why the architectural firm that brought us the Penobscot, Guardian, and Buhl would bring us the rubbish that will go into the Little Caesars headquarters and WSU School of Business is beyond me. What a fall from grace.

1953

Because it's not 1926 anymore...Albert Kahn's firm brought us Chase Tower...

[hybridy]

Why the architectural firm that brought us the Penobscot, Guardian, and Buhl would bring us the rubbish that will go into the Little Caesars headquarters and WSU School of Business is beyond me. What a fall from grace.

1953

FYI the Guardian Building was built with 'no budget' for Union Trust. AKA architect was free to design the fcuk out of it. Union Trust went belly up 6 months after the building was completed. The only clients i am aware of who have no-budget buildings would be Apple or the King of Saudi Arabia. You may want to direct your smug comments toward the firms who work for them...

[Gistok]

My smug question for them would be.... "what architectural professor from Hell told all architectural students to build carports on top of all new building designs?"

These 2 building designs have them... the new Ashton condo design has one, the first Kraemerdesigngroup Hudson's development design had them. WTH??

[hybridy]

My smug question for them would be.... "what architectural professor from Hell told all architectural students to build carports on top of all new building designs?"

These 2 building designs have them... the new Ashton condo design has one, the first Kraemerdesigngroup Hudson's development design had them. WTH??

i did see ur comment above. i am not directly involved in this project so i cannot confirm, but i will share my opinion. i would speculate that the owner requested a top floor outdoor space. in an effort to maintain the street wall/building height of buildings adjacent and interpret the cornice, the designers introduced a cantilevered overhang. feel free to keep terming it a carport tho. the cantilevered overhang accomplishes the items listed above while also protecting outdoor occupants. i would also speculate there is an effort to introduce outdoor lighting and this overhang will 'glow' as it's likely illuminated from below. i cringe that you would mention kraemer design group and smithgroupjjr in the same category. i would also invite you to critique kraemer 'ground-up' construction [[ie. auburn & griswold) and then compare that to sgjjr's contemporary projects.

FYI they're #14 of Top 50 Firms per this publication:
http://www.architectmagazine.com/firms/smithgroupjjr

[southen]

I don't mind the overhang, but it appears that there is a lot of dead space at the top of the structure that keeps throwing me off. Will it really be two stories of a blank facade leading to the cantilevered overhang?

[1953]

FYI the Guardian Building was built with 'no budget' for Union Trust. AKA architect was free to design the fcuk out of it. Union Trust went belly up 6 months after the building was completed. The only clients i am aware of who have no-budget buildings would be Apple or the King of Saudi Arabia. You may want to direct your smug comments toward the firms who work for them...

Peal back the ornate detailing on the Guardian and its still a great building architecturally. Its a myth to think that you have to spend a gazillion dollars to get a nice looking place.

[Jason]

SmithGroup is definitely a big corporate office, but [[without commenting on this specific building) they're the best firm in Detroit and if someone came to me and told me that they were building an office building and wanted to hire a firm HQed in Detroit [["HQed" because I think the group that does office projects is not located in the Detroit office) that's who I'd recommend. There's going to be a consistent minimum quality. I also think that it's really nice that they're an integrated architecture and engineering firm. It might not be something you can tell from just looking at a building but having in house engineers that the designers regularly work with and have access to is really beneficial.


For this building, and all other buildings, I get the sense that the Ilitches are very "involved" in the design process because it seems like certain elements seem to be common across all their projects regardless of architect.

As far as I'm concerned it's not what I would have done but no one is asking me.


Also about art deco, while having a big budget helps, you could build an excellent art deco building today with a normal highish end office building budget, and a pretty good art deco building with a lower budget. The architect would just need some discipline and creativity.

[Gistok]

FYI the Guardian Building was built with 'no budget' for Union Trust. AKA architect was free to design the fcuk out of it. Union Trust went belly up 6 months after the building was completed.

Actually, that's not totally true. Granted Wirt Roland of Smith/Hinchman & Grylls was given a large budget... but he decided to go the cheap route with a building skin made mostly of brick, a much cheaper alternative to stone. So he was able to take the savings on the cheaper 6 million "Guardian orange" bricks used for the exterior, and lavish the interior [[as well as the bottom and top of the exterior) with Rookwood and Pewabic tile and 14 varieties of marble detailing.

I don't think the lavish decor of the building is what drove the Union/Guardian Trust Corp. into bankrupcy as much as the bottoming out of the stock market and ensuing bank panic did.

Now the 7 Fisher brothers did tell Albert Kahn that "the sky's the limit" for building design on the Fisher Building... and Kahn had to talk them out of using gold fixures in the building bathrooms.

[MSUguy]

The district Detroit posted this update on their twitter page

[Scottathew]

It looks a lot smaller footprint than what I thought it would be, but they certainly got the street-wall and height right. Perhaps the basement will be smaller than the footprint of the building.

[gumby]

It looks a lot smaller footprint than what I thought it would be, but they certainly got the street-wall and height right. Perhaps the basement will be smaller than the footprint of the building.

Looks pretty deep. Might be a subbasement.

[Scottathew]

Has anyone else noticed that window placement on the new Little Caesars HQ building has come to a grinding halt?

They've been stuck like this for what seems like at least a month, perhaps several.

[canuck]

Nice window treatment though. I guess they ran out of them at Home Depot [[laffs). I like that the glass looka like pizza wedges.