IT firm coming to 1001 Woodward

**Huggybear** · April-20-10, 07:44 AM

Anyone see this?

http://detnews.com/article/20100420/...obs-to-Detroit

**esp1986** · April-20-10, 08:31 AM

Originally Posted by Huggybear

Anyone see this?

http://detnews.com/article/20100420/...obs-to-Detroit

This is great news. Hopefully more companies follow them there. This is has got to be a possible destination for the left over Quicken employees they won't be able to sardine into the Compuware Building. There has been work going on at 1001 for a while now. I heard a few months back that they were renovating a few floors at a time, as needed, so we finally see that there was a purpose for it. This building has an absolutely beautiful elevator lobby, with marble and the works, really in very nice shape too, only the office space was really in need of modernization.

**dtowncitylover** · April-20-10, 08:34 AM

I could never see 1001 Woodward being luxury condos. This is good news. I like that company's plan to hire in economically stressed areas, Detroit being the poster child for such.

**esp1986** · April-20-10, 09:12 AM

Originally Posted by dtowncitylover

I could never see 1001 Woodward being luxury condos. This is good news. I like that company's plan to hire in economically stressed areas, Detroit being the poster child for such.

Well after seeing some of the condo projects that have fallen apart or not gotten off the ground, I don't think that is a problem now... 1001, Griswold, Broderick, Cadillac Centre, Book Tower...

**Jimaz** · April-20-10, 11:20 AM

I found it interesting that he felt it necessary to say he doesn't consider Compuware a competitor. I wonder what Compuware thinks about this. Might they work together on some projects?

GalaxE.Solutions

**esp1986** · April-20-10, 11:49 AM

Originally Posted by Jimaz

I found it interesting that he felt it necessary to say he doesn't consider Compuware a competitor. I wonder what Compuware thinks about this. Might they work together on some projects?

GalaxE.Solutions

Well, they aren't a direct competitor... I'm sure they certainly compete for some of the same types of business. But in the big picture, we have recognizable tech based companies locating downtown, with Quicken to follow and leasing at 1001 Woodward expected by quite a few people to take off now, things are looking about as rosy as we have seen them recently downtown.

DetroitDad · April-21-10, 12:52 AM

Originally Posted by Jimaz

I found it interesting that he felt it necessary to say he doesn't consider Compuware a competitor. I wonder what Compuware thinks about this. Might they work together on some projects?

GalaxE.Solutions

I guess there can also be positives for companies of the same industry to locate near each other even if they are competitors, to share resources that are numerous, share resources and infrastrucutre that are industry specific and hard or expensive to duplicate, and help supply and demand from single suppliers. In other words, a group of like companies could all benefit from locating in the same geographic region by all renting the same infrastructure or buy from the same supllier at different times, instead of each building there own infrastructure, or each competing company buying from seperate suppliers).

**MikeyinBrooklyn** · April-21-10, 02:28 AM

What on Earth is wrong with a call center job? Are fully employed doctors, engineers, and corporate CEOs going to willingly jump to a call center job? No. People who make less than a call center pays [[i.e., the unemployed/ underemployed) will take call center jobs. It is absurdly arrogant for anyone who cares about a city with catastrophic unemployment [[several generations of some families have not worked), and literally thousands of empty buildings to look down on any job.

Here in New York, last year a plan was killed to convert an old armory into a shopping center, largely because the developer wouldn't commit to paying everyone who worked there $10/hr. So, in that vacant eyesore in the South Bronx- with neighborhood unemployment over 40%- will remain vacant in the name of protecting people who make no money whatsoever from making $8/hr.

Note to everyone who favors "living wage" laws and other such nonsense, YOU NEED A BOTTOM RUNG ON A LADDER IN ORDER TO CLIMB IT. Let's not look down on jobs!

DetroitDad · April-21-10, 03:41 AM

Originally Posted by MikeyinBrooklyn

What on Earth is wrong with a call center job? Are fully employed doctors, engineers, and corporate CEOs going to willingly jump to a call center job? No. People who make less than a call center pays [[i.e., the unemployed/ underemployed) will take call center jobs. It is absurdly arrogant for anyone who cares about a city with catastrophic unemployment [[several generations of some families have not worked), and literally thousands of empty buildings to look down on any job.

Here in New York, last year a plan was killed to convert an old armory into a shopping center, largely because the developer wouldn't commit to paying everyone who worked there $10/hr. So, in that vacant eyesore in the South Bronx- with neighborhood unemployment over 40%- will remain vacant in the name of protecting people who make no money whatsoever from making $8/hr.

Note to everyone who favors "living wage" laws and other such nonsense, YOU NEED A BOTTOM RUNG ON A LADDER IN ORDER TO CLIMB IT. Let's not look down on jobs!

Hear, hear, I agree!

**MotownSpartan** · April-21-10, 08:22 AM

Originally Posted by MikeyinBrooklyn

What on Earth is wrong with a call center job? Are fully employed doctors, engineers, and corporate CEOs going to willingly jump to a call center job? No. People who make less than a call center pays [[i.e., the unemployed/ underemployed) will take call center jobs. It is absurdly arrogant for anyone who cares about a city with catastrophic unemployment [[several generations of some families have not worked), and literally thousands of empty buildings to look down on any job.

Here in New York, last year a plan was killed to convert an old armory into a shopping center, largely because the developer wouldn't commit to paying everyone who worked there $10/hr. So, in that vacant eyesore in the South Bronx- with neighborhood unemployment over 40%- will remain vacant in the name of protecting people who make no money whatsoever from making $8/hr.

Note to everyone who favors "living wage" laws and other such nonsense, YOU NEED A BOTTOM RUNG ON A LADDER IN ORDER TO CLIMB IT. Let's not look down on jobs!

There is absolutely nothing wrong with call center jobs. The question is, with limited public resources, do we choose to use millions of dollars of tax abatements attracting call center jobs or should we focus our limited resources on attracting jobs that provide a true living/middle class wage to our area? We are essentially foregoing millions of dollars in tax revenue to bring this company in, would it be better to use this money to bring in the types of companies that will reverse the brain drain and change the perception/workforce in this area in a positive way? Maybe GalaxE will do this, I don't know, I am just concerned about using these large tax breaks, especially when it's unclear exactly what types of companies are getting these breaks.

edit: What is especially troublesome is that companies providing good paying jobs that attract the types of people who will change perceptions of our region may be paying full tax rates and essentially subsidizing less deserving companies who are only in this region for the handouts they get from MEGA, DEGC, etc.

**ndavies** · April-21-10, 08:30 AM

Originally Posted by MotownSpartan

There is absolutely nothing wrong with call center jobs. The question is, with limited public resources, do we choose to use millions of dollars of tax abatements attracting call center jobs or should we focus our limited resources on attracting jobs that provide a true living/middle class wage to our area? We are essentially foregoing millions of dollars in tax revenue to bring this company in, would it be better to use this money to bring in the types of companies that will reverse the brain drain and change the perception/workforce in this area in a positive way? Maybe GalaxE will do this, I don't know, I am just concerned about using these large tax breaks, especially when it's unclear exactly what types of companies are getting these breaks.

At this point we're giving tax abatements to any established business willing to bring new jobs to the city.

If the choice was between call center jobs and engineering or banking jobs, I'd say forget the call centers. However if the choice is between call center jobs and nothing, I'll take the call center jobs.

**Detroitnerd** · April-20-10, 11:53 AM

Skipper's?

**WALD0123** · April-20-10, 12:14 PM

Sounds like it's all but a done deal and I'm glad to hear it. With the proper ownership/management, there's no reason 1001 can't be one of the better performing buildings downtown.

Not sure how they plan on squeezing 500 people into 28,000 square feet unless it's a call center. I suppose they could just be starting with the two floors and and have options to expand over the 5 years.

**MotownSpartan** · April-20-10, 12:27 PM

Originally Posted by WALD0123

Sounds like it's all but a done deal and I'm glad to hear it. With the proper ownership/management, there's no reason 1001 can't be one of the better performing buildings downtown.

Not sure how they plan on squeezing 500 people into 28,000 square feet unless it's a call center. I suppose they could just be starting with the two floors and and have options to expand over the 5 years.

Is this just a call center? Are we bringing knowledge based jobs to the city or call center jobs?

**p1acebo** · April-20-10, 12:30 PM

Originally Posted by MotownSpartan

Is this just a call center? Are we bringing knowledge based jobs to the city or call center jobs?

According to the article it doesn't seem like it is just call center jobs... but I guess we will see.

**detmsp** · April-20-10, 12:51 PM

with an average salary of $60,000+ [[from the article) I doubt it's a call center.

**esp1986** · April-20-10, 12:50 PM

Originally Posted by MotownSpartan

Is this just a call center? Are we bringing knowledge based jobs to the city or call center jobs?

With the average salary being $63,000 a year, there's no way in hell it's a call center. Article says jobs will be in software development.

**DetroitPlanner** · April-20-10, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by esp1986

With the average salary being $63,000 a year, there's no way in hell it's a call center. Article says jobs will be in software development.

IT folks work differently than normal people. They do a significant amount of telecommuting and often work at odd hours. Technically they might have 500 people working there, but there could be only 200 permanent work stations that they share. At first glance $63k a year would be a boon to the local economy through additional taxes, and purchases but since many of these worker will not be working on site much of that income tax would be lost and retail sales as well.

**ASR89** · April-20-10, 12:14 PM

Good news for Detroit IMO.

**Packman41** · April-20-10, 06:49 PM

Damn, so the MEGA Board is going to lower GalaXe's by $4.6 million and they will bring in 500 jobs. So maybe they ought to lower everyone's taxes and create even more jobs. Just sayin'.

**DetroitZack** · April-21-10, 06:47 AM

Great news for downtown! I wonder how occupied 1001 Woodward currently is.

**ndavies** · April-21-10, 08:22 AM

Originally Posted by DetroitZack

Great news for downtown! I wonder how occupied 1001 Woodward currently is.

It's empty or pretty close to empty.

**kryptonite** · April-21-10, 09:33 AM

Ndavies, I totally agree. Great cities happen to be large employment centers first. Detroit was exactly that in the 1940's and 50's. But by the mid-60's the decline in manufacturing began and little if anything replaced those jobs.

Any tax abatements given to attract or retain jobs are essential, at least in my opinion. Detroit does not have a warm climate to tout or much in the way of natural scenery. Plus our urban problems are horrendous. The only solution to our economic demise is to try to bring in new jobs because maintaining our current employment base of auto/auto suppliers is exceedingly difficult and likely to only worsen. IT jobs, entertainment jobs, hospitality jobs, pharmaceutical jobs, alternative energy jobs, etc. are the types of employment that MI and Detroit need to bring to the region. A diversified economy weathers economic downturns better as a rule., not always, but as a rule.

**Jimaz** · April-21-10, 05:30 PM

Hope and Cynicism argue like an old married couple. It's traditional.

**kryptonite** · May-04-10, 12:51 PM

Really Originalg313, you're right - piss and moan piss and moan, jobs coming to Downtown, whine whine - and moving into an almost vacant building, such bad news, such bad news. Ask the owners of 1001 Woodward if THEY think it's bad. Ask the owners of a few shops near 1001 if THEY think it's bad. Most likely they will be thrilled. Where the newly employed people actually live is not the important issue, the issue is that some fair number of jobs will be coming to Downtown, or even to MI for that matter.

And $60,000 is more than I currently earn. But I guess some people want to crab about that being a pitiful salary.