Bagley Ave. Theater Reclamation, Renewal, Repurposing.

[Vitalis]

Dear Forum Pontificators,

While the Michigan Theater has - over time - become the film communities favorite parking deck, it's still just a hollowed out parking facility. Shame. And I fear the same fate is in store for the United Artists. Double shame. But in this age of miracles which is downtown/midtown Detroit, I suspect either auditorium or both could be reclaimed and made whole once again, no? I mean if money were no object. So, my question to you forum phenoms is this: Which theater would you reclaim and why? With the caveat of having to replicate the historical architecture of each theater as accurately and completely as possible. Now, as far as a need for another renovated theater palace - there may not be a market for such a property, but if you resurrect it, will they not come? My money would be on the Michigan [[though my heart may be with the UA).

[Zads07]

Well, this is a good question. I think the Michigan would look gorgeous but it's only a ceiling at this point.

I would absolutely love to see the UA be renovated into a theatre again, back to what it originally looked like.

I don't foresee either being renovated in the near future. The Michigan is kind of just stagnant and the UA is owned by Ilitch and it's been over a year since they said they're going to do renovate the building, but not the theatre.

If both buildings were to come back, Bagley could be a great street again, the western side of downtown would be really coming back if that were to happen.

[56packman]

What do you do with it once it’s restored? How will it cover its monthly overhead? How would enabling another theater affect the bottom line of the currently operating live theaters downtown?

[56packman]

You want to save a theater? The Bonstelle is being cut loose from WSU’s pocket book. It is intact, functional, the basement has never been flooded past the stage floor. It’s a turn-key operation. Get in there, start a 501 [[c) [[3) and Work a deal with WSU to self-finance it, or some suburban developer will buy it and tear it down now that mid town is hot. The same people that abandoned the city for developing the burbs are back now that there’s money to be made.
Take over the Bonstelle, bring it up to code, and figure out how to use it.

[Gistok]

I don't have much time to post here now... but I will say this... I agree with 56packman.... the number of traveling concerts/Broadway shows is way down in recent years... and one of the best ways for existing venues to make money is off of weddings.... but there are only so many high priced nuptuals to go around... so the existing theatres are underutilized.

But to give an estimate about the UA and Michigan Theatres....

1) the UA has mainly plasterwork issues, the 1996 $42 million larger Detroit Opera House restoration included 90% of all plasterwork was recreated, and the existing theatre seats restored. The UA has no seats, so that would all have to be replaced, as well as all lighting fixtures and structural work as well. A rough guess to restore a 1800 seat theatre [[the Opera House had 3300 seats) would be about $35+ million.

2) About 40% of the former Michigan Theatre still exists.... the outer walls, the staircases, the bathrooms, the 2 story basements, parts of the mezzanine and first balcony foyer... and all of the 2nd and 3rd balcony foyer still exist. However, all of the main floor foyer, most of the mezzanine and 1st balcony foyer, the grand staircase, the entire seating areas on the main floor [[orchestra level), and in the mezzanine and balcony areas... all would need to be added.

Since I had the priviledge of getting a private tour of the entire former theatre by Mr. Pieroni when he still owned it, I would say it would cost about $125-$150 million to restore it to its' original splendor.

Another theatre by the same architects [[Rapp & Rapp) as the 4050 seat Michigan Theatre... was the 3600 seat Loew's Kings Theatre in Brooklyn. Although in ruinous condition, the different parts of the theatre were still intact, and the 2015 restoration cost New York $95 million....

https://www.brownstoner.com/history/...ation-history/

[NSortzi]

You want to save a theater? The Bonstelle is being cut loose from WSU’s pocket book. It is intact, functional, the basement has never been flooded past the stage floor. It’s a turn-key operation. Get in there, start a 501 [[c) [[3) and Work a deal with WSU to self-finance it, or some suburban developer will buy it and tear it down now that mid town is hot. The same people that abandoned the city for developing the burbs are back now that there’s money to be made.
Take over the Bonstelle, bring it up to code, and figure out how to use it.

You make it sound like the Bonstelle is on the verge of becoming a wide open, stripped out and rotting abandoned shell. Last we heard, the developers of the West Elm Hotel, who plan to build on the lot directly north of the Bonstelle, were looking into options to purchase the theater and work it into the development plans. I'm sure if both parties are unable to come to an agreement, someone else will reuse it.

Back to the original topic of this thread, I was recently in the Michigan Theatre. If that theater ever returned, I sincerely doubt it would be anywhere near the extravagance it was. I think I'd rather see the UA restored, if I had to pick, but either one would be amazing. I contacted a gentleman through the website for the "Residences @ 150 Bagley" website, as the apartments are to be known, and he stated that the future of the theater was still up in the air. Knowing the Ilitches, it will probably become a "landscaped parking lot", or, if we're really lucky, maybe a parking garage.

[Lowell]

A number of off posts have been moved to the thread “Complaints About This Forum” in the Connections forum. https://www.detroityes.com/mb/showth...out-this-Forum

Kindly post only subject matter related to the topic being discussed. And, yes, the move was done on a mobile device.

[Vitalis]

On topic once again.... It's the romantic in me. I recall a photo of Bagley Ave. from many decades ago taken on a foggy evening, probably shot from Grand Circus Park, where the marquees of both the UA and the Michigan are the only beacons of light recognizable in the mist. It would be nice to have these two blocks back as part of the entertainment district. Also, Downtown/Midtown needs an IMAX screen. One of these two auditoriums could be converted to this format - with the tag line - Largest IMAX screen in Michigan! [[And which theater gets the IMAX branding? Gistok, isn't the potential Michigan movie screen expanse wider than the potential screen area in the UA? Perhaps not? Both auditoriums were once equipped for widescreen formats. And the UA, for one, had to expand beyond it's original proscenium bounderies to exhibit the roadshows of the 50s and 60s. With the dearth of neighborhood movie houses in any direction from GCP, couldn't there be premieres every couple of weeks in the one auditorium, and longer first-run features at the IMAX auditorium? Not the most important urban mission to be tackled, but for those of us with memories of the movie scene downtown many, many years ago, well a rising tide lifts all boats, right?