https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-e...rmer-jail-siteNew York City real estate mogul Stephen Ross is in talks with Detroit billionaire businessman Dan Gilbert and the University of Michigan about establishing a manufacturing innovation center on the vacant Gratiot Avenue site where Wayne County's half-built jail was demolished last summer, Crain's has learned.
The concept is a "Detroit innovation center" that could house research and development for UM, according to three people familiar with the talks who requested anonymity. It would represent a major expansion into Detroit for the university.
For years, the 15-acre former jail site has long been seen as an eyesore to the eastern gateway of downtown Detroit — and a major development opportunity at I-375 and Gratiot that could spur northward revitalization along the avenue.
For UM, the Gratiot site is envisioned to mirror Cornell University's Cornell Tech urban campus on Roosevelt Island in New York City, according to two sources familiar with the plans. Ross' real estate development firm, Related Cos., was one of the developers that constructed Cornell Tech's first residential building on Roosevelt Island, a narrow island in New York's East River nestled between Manhattan Island and the Queens borough.
A native of Detroit who has donated more than $300 million of his wealth to UM, Ross has expressed past interest in doing a real estate project in the city — but has largely remained on the sidelines of the revitalization of downtown Detroit that Gilbert has led since bringing his Quicken Loans Inc. to the city nine years ago.
For all of you complaining that Ross hasn't been involved in the city enough, this is a big deal.
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