Historic Apartments at Cass and Henry to be Demolished by Olympia/Ilitch

[IrishSpartan]

Like everything else in the city during the 80s - 2000s, the Fox Theatre was abandoned with no interested buyers stepping up to the plate to buy it and renovate it. That "age of theatre restoration" was certainly not happening in Detroit.

I'm all for constructive criticism, but let's actually do so with our facts being straight.



Both the Pistons and Lions left for the far outer ring of the suburbs during the 1980s. If it wasn't for Illitch owning the Red Wings and Tigers, it's unlikely whoever else owned them would have had any interest of keeping them downtown.



Why was a gigantic department store on Woodward Avenue closed down and demolished? Why were gigantic skyscrapers abandoned?



Most of the kids who attend Cass Tech and most of the people who patronize the symphony live in the suburbs and the outer edges of the city. It would have made a lot more sense for them to move closer to their customer / student base. The fact that they stuck it out at all was purely out of loyalty and tradition to the city [[and of course, the Illitch family maintaining some level of activity downtown), not for any realistic reasons.



How well was that transit-thingy going before Dan Gilbert came along and ponied up his money for the Q-Line?

This is only partially true. Let me correct the fact of when the Lions and Pistons moved. The Lions moved to the Silverdome in 1975 and the Pistons in 1978. The Tigers stayed stayed in Detroit because the owner until 1983 [[John Fetzer) strongly believed the team belonged in the city. At one point around 1990, Tom Monaghan considered moving the team to Dearborn. However, the deal fell through. It's believed when Fetzer sold the team he may have made Monaghan promise verbally to keep the Tigers in Detroit. Joe Louis Arena was built when Bruce Norris still owned the Red Wings, and Norris simply looked for the best deal. Actually, Downtown Detroit was considered a drastic improvement location wise compared to where they had been at Olympia on Grand River & McGraw.

[emu steve]

This is only partially true. Let me correct the fact that the Lions moved to the Silverdome in 1975 and the Pistons in 1978. The Tigers stayed stayed in Detroit because the owner until 1983 [[John Fetzer) strongly believed the team belonged in the city. At one point around 1990, Tom Monaghan considered moving the team Dearborn. However, the deal fell through. It's believed when Fetzer sold the team he may have made Monaghan promise verbally to keep the Tigers in Detroit. Joe Louis Arena was built when Bruce Norris was the owner of the Red Wings, and he was simply looking for the best deal. Downtown Detroit was considered a drastic improvement location wise compared to where they had been at Olympia on Grand River & McGraw.

I assume 313WX probably made a typo on the dates.

It is hard to believe that at one time [[e.g., 1978) the four major pro teams were at Tiger Stadium, Silverdome [[two teams) and Olympia.

I think Detroit pro sports fans should be jumping for joy to hear Comerica Park, Ford Field, and Little Caesars Arena compared to those venues!!

Ford Field may have been 'state of the art' when it opened 15 years ago.

LCA IS state of the art. Period.

Comerica Park was good, but never a great ballpark.

[masterblaster]

Demolishing these 3 apartment buildings is going to add to the # of parking spots - 30 parking spots?

These buildings are relatively small, but they add some much character to that area! These buildings represent the uniqueness of Cass Corridor within the city. Do you really think a developer couldn't rehab these structures and make a killing in rent? And it is literally across the street from this "entertainment" district. Heck, there is even enough room in the back of the buildings to stuff some parking for its residents.

I am in Afghanistan. Has the demolition already started?

[IrishSpartan]

I assume 313WX probably made a typo on the dates.

It is hard to believe that at one time [[e.g., 1978) the four major pro teams were at Tiger Stadium, Silverdome [[two teams) and Olympia.

I think Detroit pro sports fans should be jumping for joy to hear Comerica Park, Ford Field, and Little Caesars Arena compared to those venues!!

Ford Field may have been 'state of the art' when it opened 15 years ago.

LCA IS state of the art. Period.

Comerica Park was good, but never a great ballpark.

When the Pistons moved from Olympia for the 1960-61 season to Cobo Arena it was considered a tremendous upgrade. In the 1960's, Cobo was considered was one of the best arenas in the NBA. The main reasons? It was new and did not have ice. The Pistons were the primary tenant there.

LCA? Well, Tom Wilson has been with Olympia Entertainment since 2010. He was instrumental in how the Palace turned out. I have no doubt he is the brains behind this facility.

[emu steve]

When the Pistons moved from Olympia for the 1960-61 season to Cobo Arena it was considered a tremendous upgrade. In the 1960's, Cobo was considered was one of the best arenas in the NBA. The main reasons? It was new and did not have ice. The Pistons were the primary tenant there.

LCA? Well, Tom Wilson has with been Olympia Entertainment since 2010. He was instrumental in how the Palace turned out. I have no doubt he is the brains behind this facility.

I liked Cobo in its day. Saw the Pistons play there a few times in my younger days. Saw the MAC basketball tourney there in '91.

[Gistok]

Just read this in a Preservation Detroit Email flyer.....

Last month we raised the alarm about two historic apartment buildings in the Cass Corridor that are under study to be included in a Cass-Henry Historic District. When crews on site told passersby that they were prepping the buildings for demolition, a watchful preservation community mobilized.

What happened to the demo threat? As far as we know, no demo permits have been issued, and City Council reassured us that the building's owners were doing routine abatement work on the buildings.
The threat does not seem imminent, but we're keeping watch.

[EastsideAl]

Ahhhh, Cobo... Cobo Arena was a great place to watch a basketball game. When I was in high school we used to buy those $3.50 upper tier seats [[$1.75 with student discount for non-weekend games), which hung right out over the action. Some nights it looked like dancing Gus was going to go hurdling down towards the court into the expensive [[$14!!) seats. Saw Kareem and Dr. J and so many other basketball greats of that period there [[including the very last game there, when David Thompson of the Nuggets went for 73 in a battle with eastside Detroit native George Gervin for the scoring crown). As well as Piston stars like Dave Bing and Bob Lanier.

But Cobo, with it's blank wall end and only 11,000 seats, was too small for the modern NBA, and the league wanted them in a bigger facility. Even though the Pistons never drew well there at all. 7,000 or 8,000 was a big crowd in those days, although it could be a very noisy crowd who was really into the game. And, early on, the move to the Silverdome [[an absolutely horrible place for basketball) didn't really improve matters [[despite the persistent whispers that the Pistons management thought the Silverdome move would improve attendance because the Cobo crowd was 'too black' and 'threatening'). It really wasn't until the Isiah Thomas years, and the rise of an actual contending team, that the Pistons and the NBA became popular in the Detroit area.

We'll see how well the Pistons do in a new downtown arena with a lousy, starless, and not very entertaining basketball team. I'll definitely go to a few games, but I'm a basketball lover. Once the new arena 'wow' factor passes, they better be on the way to building a contender if they expect attendance to remain high, especially at the prices they will now be charging [[it sure ain't $3.50 anymore).

[emu steve]

Al, I can go back a little further:

Not sure if I drove or took the bus, but saw Reggie Harding go up against Wilt Chamberlain at Cobo. My guess around '65?

I believe I would have been up in the rafters [[all I could afford).

In those days, the NBA was REALLY a big man's game, and Detroit pinned their hopes on big Reggie. Reggie was 7 feet plus in a day when 7 footers were not common... [[remember, Wayne Embry, a 6' 8" center?)

Of course, Reggie had more personal problems than... and didn't make it.

[professorscott]

It is hard to believe that at one time [[e.g., 1978) the four major pro teams were at Tiger Stadium, Silverdome [[two teams) and Olympia.

I think Detroit pro sports fans should be jumping for joy to hear Comerica Park, Ford Field, and Little Caesars Arena compared to those venues!!

Ford Field may have been 'state of the art' when it opened 15 years ago.

LCA IS state of the art. Period.

Comerica Park was good, but never a great ballpark.

What fascinates me is how little all of this matters to the modern business of sports entertainment. The major effort these days is to get you into the facility and then pick your pocket as much as possible. So Comerica Park may not be a great ballpark - it isn't - but that's hardly the point; the point is that there are a lot of ways for you to spend money once you're in there.

Essentially all of modern American professional sports is a combination of actual sports with Disney World. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I bet a lot of people whose last name is Ilitch couldn't care less how I feel.

[Zads07]

Update on the buildings, a public hearing on the proposed historic district that could include these buildings is happening on Thursday at 4 p.m.

https://detroit.curbed.com/2018/1/8/...toric-district

Save these buildings from being another piece of crumbled history!

[Zads07]

https://www.facebook.com/Preservatio...55328431693763

Update on the meeting, Cass-Henry Historic District approved. Requires City Council approval in February, but it's 90% about to be saved from the Ilitch Demolition Company.

[Richard]

That is good news so far,thanks for the update.

[Lowell]

Demonstration vs. Demolition of Historic Ansonia and Atlanta Apts. and U.S. Motors auto dealership building at 2959 Woodward Announced.

Here a great article by John Gallagher of the Freep along with notice of the demonstration against demolition of these buildings along with U.S. Motors auto dealership building at 2959 Woodward .

Attachment 35069

IT'S TIME TO STOP RAZING BUILDINGS FOR LCA PARKING

"Olympia Development seeking more surface lots around new sports arena

"Downtown Detroit needs many things. More surface parking lots are not among them.

"But the Ilitch family's Olympia Development wants to demolish more buildings near Little Caesars Arena to create more surface parking.

"This goes for vacant residential buildings on Cass near Interstate-75 that are the focus of a preservation fight just now, as well as other structures in the area that appear to be threatened with demolition.

"On Saturday, a 2 p.m. demonstration is planned to protest potential demolition of several structures on the northern edge of the Ilitches' District Detroit footprint, including the old U.S. Motors auto dealership building at 2959 Woodward."

[Lowell]

Interesting article in today's Freep details how the Ilitch Empire has never been blight-ticket for the Ansonia Hotel and Atlanta Apartment buildings since acquiring the properties in 2009 in spite of clearly visible violations.
Blighted Ilitch-owned buildings near Little Caesars Arena go unticketed

The City of Detroit's move to possibly condemn a ramshackle house on Cass Avenue next to the new Little Caesars Arena has raised questions about two nearby blighted properties that are owned by the Ilitch family but that have not received a blight ticket since 2009.

The buildings — the former Hotel Ansonia at 2447 Cass Ave. and the former Atlanta Apartments at 2467 Cass Ave. — are two of several dozen buildings owned by the Ilitch family in the lower Cass Corridor.

While the buildings have been inspected on and off over the past decade, neither has received a blight ticket since the year the Ilitch family's Sorin Enterprise LLC purchased them.

[1953]

Glad to see the Ilitches ticketed for this. Their bad behavior continues only because there have been no consequences for it.

[Eastside...]

I know y'all are dying to here the story of my 1 [[one) night at the Hotel Anasonia...but for now I'm off to the New York Psychoanalytic Institute for a screening of "The Conversation"...w/ discussion to follow.

[kathy2trips]

I have NEVER eaten one of their pizzas and NEVER WILL. Why should I pay them to wreck the city? Those people have NO respect for the history, architecture nor the people of Detroit. They are about as sensitive and feeling as a spot in their own parking lot[[s). Don't people move and renovate anything anymore? The Gem Theater got moved, surely those folks can handle smaller stuff. Some of the most desirable areas in other cities are restored areas of vintage structures. And Detroit kills another golden goose...........

[Zads07]

Hopefully this is just the beginning of tickets to the Ilitch family, holding them accountable for creating empty and blighted buildings.

My hope is that they sell their properties to developers who actually want to do something with them.

[kathy2trips]

My hope is that they sell their properties to developers who actually want to do something with them.

Yeah, now that all the charm has been dumped into a landfill?

Fair Use Photo for Edu. Purposes Only

Maybe a little over-dramatic, but not much. NYC is still grieving over the old Penn Station.

How about some new brutalism, perhaps? In the most garish colors imaginable, please! Eh, I know there are architects that still create aesthetically pleasing and architecturally sensitive buildings, but they're pretty rare. Here's a photo of an apartment building in Houston, a city who regrets now the architectural massacre it waged in the past, and now can only try and re-create it....which I think they've done a better-than average job here.


Renoir Lofts
1005 South Shepherd
Houston TX
Built in 2000

I love Detroit, but I know my city. I always hope for the best, but brace myself for the worst.

[Richard]

I have NEVER eaten one of their pizzas and NEVER WILL. Why should I pay them to wreck the city? Those people have NO respect for the history, architecture nor the people of Detroit. They are about as sensitive and feeling as a spot in their own parking lot[[s). Don't people move and renovate anything anymore? The Gem Theater got moved, surely those folks can handle smaller stuff. Some of the most desirable areas in other cities are restored areas of vintage structures. And Detroit kills another golden goose...........

After the storms in Florida I did some restoration work on an 2 story 1850s house that was moved through the Florida wilderness and swamps 140 miles in 1925 by a team of oxen.

They can move anything and most cities do.

North Carolina has a preservation trust,when historic houses and buildings are collected through tax liens,gifted for write offs or even donated they become the caretakers.

They mothball and stabilize to prevent further damage,then they put together a package that includes financing,tax credits and what ever other credits are available then offer and market the complete package.

There is a house by me where they say it is the oldest house in the city,it was hemmed in by freeway expansions and no way to move it complete,so they disassembled it and reassembled it at the new location.

DOT wants to widen the freeway or add a ramp? No matter what size the building is in the way,they are moving it elsewhere,mostly as infill in already historic neighborhoods.

When we have a historic or old house we never own it,we are just the currant caretakers tasked with preserving the past for future generations just as the generations have before us.

I guess the consolation in Detroit right now verses 10 years ago is the preservation part is starting to get some teeth,unfortunately for many,a little late in the process.

[masterblaster]

After the storms in Florida I did some restoration work on an 2 story 1850s house that was moved through the Florida wilderness and swamps 140 miles in 1925 by a team of oxen.

They can move anything and most cities do.

North Carolina has a preservation trust,when historic houses and buildings are collected through tax liens,gifted for write offs or even donated they become the caretakers.

They mothball and stabilize to prevent further damage,then they put together a package that includes financing,tax credits and what ever other credits are available then offer and market the complete package.

There is a house by me where they say it is the oldest house in the city,it was hemmed in by freeway expansions and no way to move it complete,so they disassembled it and reassembled it at the new location.

DOT wants to widen the freeway or add a ramp? No matter what size the building is in the way,they are moving it elsewhere,mostly as infill in already historic neighborhoods.

When we have a historic or old house we never own it,we are just the currant caretakers tasked with preserving the past for future generations just as the generations have before us.

I guess the consolation in Detroit right now verses 10 years ago is the preservation part is starting to get some teeth,unfortunately for many,a little late in the process.

Thanks for sharing this information

[K-slice]

"In the year since — as the buildings remain in limbo, awaiting a May 24 hearing that will determine whether they will be given a permanent historical designation — the city has not issued any blight tickets."

sounds like we'll know their fate by tomorrow morning according to the article.

[Eastside...]

Hello people,
Methinks it was May of '92'... I was living @ Wayne State with a girl. We had a huge argument...I recall packing a rather large bag and calling a cab. As I didn't have much bread, I specifically remember asking the cabbie, "take me someplace cheap."
The Anasonia is where he took me.
I checked in and went to the room.
It was 18×10ish...no carpet, no toilet...a small, neatly made, military type cot...small sink & a single light bulb hanging low from high ceiling...very Spartan accomodations.
I remember sitting down and thinking..."what were we arguing about anyway."
After 10min I heard heels down corridor and a knock on my door.

[Eastside...]

[[writing from phone sorry folks)

So I get this knock and it's a woman in mini skirt...she says the owner wants to talk to me downstairs.
I go down and talk to a black gentleman about 45-55yo who says I can't stay here. I tell him I have to work at 3am and needed some rest [[I worked in Eastern Market for the summer and started at 3 or 4)...he agrees to let me stay and allow me to pick my bag up after work.
I didn't get much sleep; although it was quiet.
In the morning I was starving, the only place open were the downtown Coney's.
After Chili & Coney's...I walked up Gratiot to the market.
Up Gratiot, just as I crossed the bridge over 375... I'll never forget...I nearly doubled over with the worst heartburn I've ever had...to this day mind you. When I walked In and asked the foreman if he had any antacid, he looked at me like I was nuts.
Thank God he had some!

[Eastside...]

[[again, sorry folks)

That afternoon after work...I returned for me bag.......and on every sidewalk and corner of the Anasonia were Hooks.
It was surreal because they all immediately seemed to know who I was/why I was there.
For the record, those ladies were very polite and seemed genuinely sorry I had leave [[what inspired hospitality!) ....they retrieved my bag and it hadn't been touched.