Two Major Woodward Apartments Abandoned...

[Zacha341]

Highland Park and Detroit have recently lost two major apartment buildings. One being the Highland Park Towers on Woodward near Glendale, the other one a half a mile south in Detroit I believe. These buildings had been in decline for a decade or more. We now have two new giant eyesores on Woodward... they are locked down for now, but soon we will have the "gaping" scull eye [[windowless) look of Lee Plaza on Woodward-double fold!

The one very large building according to the news was without electricity...
http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/20666279/detail.html

Which I think ultimately ended up un-resolved as last month there was a news broadcast showing people desperately moving out in the dead of night... Now both buildings are abandoned? Lights out!

Does anyone know if both buildings were owned by the same person. It is sad to see two major Woodward apartments gone with three months... Back in the 80's one had a business store front called "A Day Badge" that used to do signage, promotions and business insignia and badges.... Anyone recall that?

The other building had a health food store called "Honeybee" or "Honeycomb" which has relocated across the street.....

Anyone know anything about the demise of these two buildings? Is it speading on to Palmer Park?

[RickBeall]

What a shame! The Highland Park building was full of tenants too!

[davewindsor]

So what is the deal with hydro off before the electrical inspectors have to review all the wiring to have the power turned back on? 3 months? If so, they got like 2 weeks to get the power back on before all that old wiring has to be updated. The bank better hurry up to get the power back on or that building's done.

[Zacha341]

I think the lights have been out for weeks in both buildings. And they are huge buildings...There is another high rise build just off Woodward on Seward with every window and casing stripped out. And of course there are no lights on...

So what is the deal with hydro off before the electrical inspectors have to review all the wiring to have the power turned back on? 3 months? If so, they got like 2 weeks to get the power back on before all that old wiring has to be updated. The bank better hurry up to get the power back on or that building's done.

[DetroitDad]

Is this including the Labelle Tower?

[tahleel]

I think the lights have been out for weeks in both buildings. And they are huge buildings...There is another high rise build just off Woodward on Seward with every window and casing stripped out. And of course there are no lights on...

Does anyone know the deal about the building on Seward and Woodward? It seems like crime has gone down since it was closed down. I had to go in there once to find someone, I was surprised I made it out unscathed! Anyways, I was hoping that they stripped the windows out to put new ones in, but from what it looks like, they just left it to rot.

Anyone know?

-Tahleel

[jjaba]

What time is it? It's Lowell Boileau time to get us some before pictures, and then some after pictures a year form now. Detroit Ruins, a building at a time.

Davewindsor, thanks for the use of the word "hydro". In Detroit, we say "Edison" sometimes.
Both mean the same; juice to run your fridge, the teevee, and the blender.

[douglasm]

Sad. It's such a pretty building. I know this is one of those back in the day stories, but my grandmother [[who lived in Farrand Park Apts., one block north) had a friend who lived in the Highland Towers. We went to visit once and I was very impressed by the lobby in perticular and the building in general.

[barnesfoto]

Highland Towers had to be the most beautiful apartment building in HP. Sad, sad, sad.

[cman710]

Is this the building near Woodward and Seward?

[tahleel]

Is this the building near Woodward and Seward?

Yes, that is the building.

-Tahleel

[softailrider]

There's a huge apartment on Clairmont just west of Woodward [[ around the 100 block ) that went vacant about two months ago, it was always a going concern, then it had a small fire on one of the upper floors [[ wasn't that buildings first fire either ) I went by there and the place had gone totally wild: doors and windows wide open, people hanging around outside drinking, people just walking in and out. Then the place got boarded up, haven't been by there lately, building is probablly stripped and dead by now.

[douglasm]

Lowell......
......someone asked for a picture of the Highland Towers. I remember a picture you took that's posted on the old forum under the "Apartment Ruins of Detroit" thread. It shows the Towers, Farrand Park Apts., Trinity Church, and the two "Y"'s. Could you find it and repost it here?

[Lowell]

Read'em and weep friends. The Moorish-influenced Highland Towers has this fabulous front entrance featuring an art deco-style stain glass window.


This splendid structure absolutely dominates this stretch of Woodward. In spite of his size, I would think its chance for survival are better than average. It features underground parking, entered from the rear alley and has an inset lane on Woodward allowing for pull in parking. The neighborhood behind it is National Register of Historic Homes District and is one of the few surviving middle class and semi-solid areas of Highland Park.



The Highland Towers was part of my landscape from my Colorado St. house one block away. These pictures were from May 2007 when it seemed on a bit of a rebound, new windows etc. and few visible vacancies. [BTW A Day Badge was in the apartment to the north, The Farrand Apartments aka 11 Farrand Park.]

[Fury13]

I would hate to see Highland Towers trashed. That kind of architectural detail is irreplaceable.

The location is so bad, though... I doubt the place will survive.

[Lowell]

Regarding the somewhat recently abandoned apartments on Seward the victims are the Wellington Place at 59:


and the Bonita, next door to the west.

[Lowell]

Regarding 'spreading to Palmer Park'... If you don't count the two on McNichols [17110 Third and the Delmar] that have been abandoned for several years there are only two other vacant apartments in Palmer Park that I know of: 750 Whitmore and this beauty, Merton Manor.

[tallboy66]

Highland Park has been bankrupt for how many years? We used to have a joke that people from Detroit wouldn't even go to HP. Does that HP apt complex have a courtyard looks like it, and I'm sure back in the day it wasn't that close to the road and had a nice lawn.
Those 2 on Seward were just drug houses, cars were broken into all along that end I even saw one burn, but I actually looked at buying a condo up the street a 2 bedroom for something like $65,000 about 10 years ago.

[rjlj]

The stain glass windows of the Highland Towers enterance are still intact thank god but it is only a metter of time before the building is destroyed. When you rent to pigs the pictures shown are the result. In how many other American cities do its own citizens systematically destroy their own city?

[thecarl]

i've noticed also that the model t plant is losing the battle against detroit's forces of destruction and violence. the plywood barriers are being stripped down, and the windows broken, faster than the building can be maintained.

abyssinia is also another sickening mess.

"so it goes."

[royce]

Thank God the Wellington is now abandoned. It was a haven for criminals. It actually was out of place for that street. Out of place in that it was too big for the type of housing that's available on Seward. I actually took a look at an apartment there in the early 90s. Even then it just felt too big.

Tearing the Wellington down would probably improve the area more than hurt it. Maybe some Crosswinds Townhomes can replace it. Besides, I've always had the feeling that Crosswinds wanted to build along Woodward up to the store on the corner of Seward, but the presence of the Wellington made them reconsider. They probably thought, "Who would want to live in a new condo near that hell hole?"

Now maybe some new development can happen, if the Wellington is torn down within the next few years. My brother lived on Seward in the late 80s, early 90s and it was a safe and well-maintained area. Leveling the Wellington and getting rid of some of the criminals out of some of the other buildings along Seward, might give the area some new life.

[j to the jeremy]

I doubt Crosswinds would be looking to build out more in this economy though. I saw a lot of for sale and for rent signs in that development last time I drove by.

[Bearinabox]

The stain glass windows of the Highland Towers enterance are still intact thank god but it is only a metter of time before the building is destroyed. When you rent to pigs the pictures shown are the result. In how many other American cities do its own citizens systematically destroy their own city?

Huh? No, this is the result of the landlord going bankrupt and not keeping up with his bills. I don't see how you can blame it on the tenants.

[DetroitScooter]

I've always admired the architectural details of the Highland Towers, so I give it a good once over every day when I scoot by. In late summer I noticed that there wasn't a single light on in the building, and that must have been when the exodus began. Now all the [[remaining) store fronts are also showing signs of abandonment and it's not looking good for the building. I hope that good things start to happen there.

[GRALR]

When we were there it was a building I admired each time we passed it by. I hope someone puts a guard in there. I was amazed at the interior lobby details, truly a fantastic building! Please post more pics if anyone has them.