Former Kmart headquarters in Troy to be demolished

**Airforceguy** · August-31-23, 04:36 PM

The long-discussed demolition of the sprawling former Kmart Corp. headquarters in Troy is about to go forward.

Crews started adding fencing around the long-vacant site at 3100 W. Big Beaver Road in the last few weeks and the city says wreckers will start tearing down parts of the behemoth starting in September, marking the end of nearly two decades of vacancy and obsolescence.

The owner has submitted a demolition permit application, but not any redevelopment proposals, the city said in a statement. Demolition would start first on the parking structure and then the main building."Demolition of this tired asset is the first step towards redevelopment of this prominent location," said Brent Savidant, community development director, said in a statement.

The property, which clocks in at about 1.1 million square feet across 40 or so acres at West Big Beaver and Coolidge, is owned by Forbes Frankel Troy Ventures LLC, which paid a reported $17.5 million for it in December 2009 in a defensive real estate move.

The JV, run by Nathan Forbes and his Southfield-based Forbes Co. and the Frankel family, also owns the adjacent luxury shopping mall, Somerset Collection. Forbes said in an interview four years ago that tearing down the Kmart property was a possibility, although some plans had called for repurposing it. In 2016, Forbes said during a conference that a master-planning process was underway, although nothing was publicly revealed on it after. Documents filed with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy and the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs list Detroit-based demolition company Adamo Group as a contractor on the project.

Troy officials did not return repeated messages. Mayor Ethan Baker referred to a statement issued by the city on Thursday afternoon. Likewise, Adamo representatives did not return messages seeking comment.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/real-e...-be-demolished

**Danny** · August-31-23, 06:05 PM

Adieu Troy K-mart HQ. Thanks for 50 years of memories.

**Gistok** · August-31-23, 06:54 PM

Interesting that the 1914 built Kresge HQ [[Kales Building) on Grand Circus Park, and the 1932 built Kresge HQ [[Michigan Technology Center) on Cass Park survive and are repurposed, but the 1972 built Troy HQ is getting torn down.

I've been to the Troy building, and it is such a weird shape and configuration... very hard to repurpose this building to anything except office space.

**Lowell** · August-31-23, 08:45 PM

Amazing the rise and demise of Kmart. To think, it once surpassed Sears to become the largest retailer in the country. Now neither exist.

**Jimaz** · September-01-23, 06:00 AM

They were referring to it as an eyesore on the radio so I looked it up in Street View. Maybe it should be torn down but I wouldn't call it an eyesore.

Note the historical marker. According to Michigan Historical Markers it says

S.S. Kresge Company: Sebastian Spering Kresge founded the firm in 1899 in Detroit. His guidance during its formative years was responsible for its initial success. By 1916 when it was incorporated in Michigan, the company numbered 150 units. Innovative and careful management insured its continued growth. Since the introduction of the rapidly expanding Kmart division in 1962, the firm has become one of the world’s leading mercantile chains. In 1972 the firm’s international headquarters was located here.

**GPCharles** · September-01-23, 08:33 AM

It was a strange building to work in. There were two straightline corridors that went from the 1 front door to one of the 2 back doors. Anywhere else you were headed you had to negotiate your way through numerous pods with constant 90 degree turns.
I once followed Mr. Fauber, the then Chairman, through about 5 pods when he turned around towards me with a confused look on his face and asked what was the way to the construction department. All pods were 3 floors high, except the one with the top executives, which was 4 floors and they were on top floor. Us peons always said that was in case one of the executives jumped out of the window in a fit of despair over something, they wouldn't be too badly hurt.
The best day in the Kmart cafeteria was batter-dipped fish day. Even the top executives came down for that one.
FYI - it won numerous architectural awards when it was first built.

**Lowell** · September-01-23, 04:49 PM

At least the Kresge Foundation remains doing a lot of good and helping out the arts.

**Jimaz** · September-08-23, 08:10 AM

Architecturally unique Kmart HQ in Troy will likely go down as last of its kind

The old Kmart headquarters in Troy began life as one-of-a-kind building, and will soon go down as likely the last of its kind....

The new Troy headquarters was designed by what was then the Detroit-based architectural firm Smith, Hinchman & Grylls Associates.

After it opened in 1972, the Free Press' design critic described how the building was comprised of three-story modular units that fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, with an octagonal tower in each corner containing stairways, restrooms and HVAC equipment. Some units had interior glass walls and others were masonry. And between some units were courtyards. {Full-grown trees were originally lowered into the courtyards by helicopter.}...

The building won numerous accolades and architecture awards in the 1970s.

“It won a national design award from the American Institute of Architects, and that is a very rare win. There aren’t many in Detroit that I can think of that have won national AIA awards," said Carl Roehling, former CEO of the SmithGroup architecture firm, which is the successor to Smith, Hinchman & Grylls. "At the time it was unique in many many ways."...

Booker, who began her Kmart career as a computer programmer, recalled how the building's basement housed various IBM mainframe computers that ran on the COBOL language. The basement had strong air conditioners because those big machines ran hot....

A representative for the Forbes Co. this week declined to comment on the company's reasons for pursing demolition or whether efforts were made to reoccupy the building. The Forbes Co. also declined a Free Press request to photograph the interior of the building before demolition....

**JBMcB** · September-08-23, 09:58 PM

The sides of the building facing Coolidge and Big Beaver were fairly well maintained. The back side facing the small parking structure was in rough shape. There are numerous broken windows and pried-open doors where you could get in. There are two or three videos of people wandering around inside on Youtube.

Apparently they shot a few big action set-pieces for the Red Dawn remake in there. One of the Youtube videos shows there's still a big "Police" sign in one of the atriums from the shoot.

Whatever the Sears company is called now, they still own the big non-descript building behind the old HQ. It's apparently some kind of data center, as I see racks of computer hardware waiting to be disposed of sitting in the parking lot from time to time.

**MichaelAnthonyVideos** · September-09-23, 08:21 PM

I thought this would have been redeveloped in to something.

**Gistok** · September-10-23, 05:08 PM

^ This would have been an awful redevelopment as residential. The distance between the parking lot and many parts of this sprawling complex would have not been a place that people would want to live. It would be like living in a maze. This sits on prime land, but unfortunately no one could make it work for any redevelopment over the past 18 years. Checkout aerial drone footage...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brFGmVTL6p0

**Jimaz** · September-10-23, 05:30 PM

What interesting about that drone footage is that you can see the interior courtyards weren't nearly as well trimmed as the exterior landscape. One wonders what kind of wildlife is in there.

**softailrider** · September-11-23, 07:39 AM

I would like to see a single family housing development with good size lots, like a 1/4 acre. But of course that ain’t gonna happen. Not like you need more retail in that area.

**401don** · September-11-23, 11:21 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

^ This would have been an awful redevelopment as residential. The distance between the parking lot and many parts of this sprawling complex would have not been a place that people would want to live. It would be like living in a maze. This sits on prime land, but unfortunately no one could make it work for any redevelopment over the past 18 years. Checkout aerial drone footage...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brFGmVTL6p0

It does sit on prime land but prime for what? There's not much demand for retail or office development in the burbs and it's not a spot for industrial. They said the Palace and Silverdome were prime spots as well. When you live in the Toronto area like I do, which desperately needs every square inch of land, you are overwhelmed by the sprawl and available land in metro Detroit. Of course the stagnant population doesn't help.

**GPCharles** · September-11-23, 12:08 PM

FYI - those four corners are subject to the terms of a Consent Decree from the 1970s or 80s that control future development on all four corners. During my Kmart days they tried to get it revised, to build a Kmart hotel if I remember correctly) but no luck.

**JBMcB** · September-11-23, 12:48 PM

Originally Posted by softailrider

I would like to see a single family housing development with good size lots, like a 1/4 acre. But of course that ain’t gonna happen. Not like you need more retail in that area.

Who would want a single family detached home backing up onto the corner of two surface highways?

A mixed-use apartment building, however, would do well. For reference, they just built a large apartment building right next to the freeway off of Big Beaver, and it sold out pretty quick. Even the dozen new retail units are full, except for City BBQ which just moved to a standalone building. They built apartments behind the MJR theater off of Maple, and they also sold out. They are building condo-style apartments further down Big Beaver, as well as senior apartments at Wattles and Crooks. I've heard rumored plans of a mixed regular and senior apartment block with a pedestrian bridge to Sommerset.

My neighbor's daughter just got a job as a Vet at a animal hospital in Troy, and is having problems finding an apartment at all, even with all the new development in the area. I think she ended up renting something in Clawson.

**MichaelAnthonyVideos** · September-12-23, 07:17 AM

True.

**Burnsie** · September-20-23, 10:45 AM

Originally Posted by JBMcB

A mixed-use apartment building, however, would do well.

Yes, the usual multicolored structure indistinguishable from thousands of other such developments in the US. First floor retail that may or may not get tenants. Sigh. Even though the Kmart HQ was difficult to redevelop, it was a striking landmark. Highly doubtful that anything built on that site will also be.

**Jimaz** · October-12-23, 11:52 AM

Copper thieves arrested after caught stripping pipes from old Kmart headquarters slated for demolition in Troy

Officers also seized crack cocaine, meth from woman arrested on the property

Troy police nabbed a couple of thieves in the process of stealing copper from the former Kmart headquarters after patrols heard noises coming from the building last weekend.

The department said they arrested a man and a woman on Sunday, Oct. 1 when officers at the site along Big Beaver Road saw a section of damaged fencing around 10:30 a.m....

After inspecting the fence, officers spotted an unknown vehicle parked under the parking deck and had their suspicions further roused when they heard power tools and banging coming from inside the building.

According to the department, police walked in on the couple as they attempted to strip cooper piping....

I believe they said the couple came from Flint in the radio version of the story.

**sirrealone** · October-13-23, 07:36 AM

I mean, the only thing they forgot was to unfurl a giant flag from the top of the building that said "Robbery In Progress"

**Jimaz** · October-13-23, 08:33 AM

Originally Posted by sirrealone

I mean, the only thing they forgot was to unfurl a giant flag from the top of the building that said "Robbery In Progress"

Okay, I didn't LOL at that but I did chuckle out loud.

I heard the story again and verified the scrappers did come from Flint {just to nip any Detroit bashers in the bud}.