Quicken Loans To Buy Madison Building

[DetroitDad]

If this doesn't get the rest of us moving... well, the rest will just have to push it further, I guess.

Detroit; as she lay on the operating table with bullet holes, they debated whether she would even make it another two hours. Now she sits in rehabilitation recovering from a near death experience inspiring us through the same.

Sorry, no one can understand the pure energy and feeling of empowerment I feel right now, and nobody could take it away. You can't even understand it unless your feeling it this morning too.

My low income apartment overlooks the Madison Building, across the street from the United Artist Building, the Statler site, and North Detroit parking desert. This morning I'll go look out the window with my daughter and wife, and be inspired by the ghetto they ruined.

Nevermind, you won't get it, not yet.

Source: http://www.detnews.com/article/20101...dison-Building

Quicken Loans will buy Detroit's Madison Building
Firm wants to get suburban workers downtown as soon as it can

Quicken Loans Inc. plans to buy a downtown Detroit building to house workers who couldn't move with the company to the Compuware building from its Livonia headquarters and offices in suburbs, including Troy and Farmington Hills.

The mortgage company signed a contract to buy the Madison Building, subject to due diligence, Quicken Chief Executive Bill Emerson wrote in an e-mail to employees Monday evening and confirmed by a company spokeswoman.

The building, located on Washington Boulevard near Grand River Boulevard, is about two blocks from Compuware and overlooks Grand Circus Park.

"As you all know, we are committed to getting as many of our Michigan-based team members to Detroit as soon as we can," Emerson wrote in the e-mail. "In just the three months since we have been in the city, I can already tell you we have made a difference — and frankly Detroit has made a difference in all of us."

Quicken signed a five-year lease for four floors in the Compuware building in August to house 1,700 workers but still doesn't have enough space to bring all of its Michigan-based employees downtown.

Quicken founder and Chairman Dan Gilbert said in August he wanted to move an additional 2,000 workers downtown. He said then that he hopes to attract more businesses downtown and create a technology hub that will help downtown's Woodward Avenue be known as "WEBward Avenue."

"We're looking at Detroit space not only for our own team but to attract other businesses," said spokeswoman Paula Silver. "We want to help bring new businesses to the area."
Silver declined to name a purchase price or spell out more specific plans for the building.

"Our plans for the building are not final," she said.
When Quicken moved most employees downtown in August, it gave them a raise to compensate for the city's income tax, which amounts to 1.25 percent of income for nonresident workers and 2 percent for a worker living in Detroit.

Gilbert's In-House Realty, a real estate service firm catering to Quicken clients and employees, also helped new downtown workers interested in moving downtown and aided them in selling or renting their suburban dwellings


From The Detroit News: http://www.detnews.com/article/20101...#ixzz14mrf6QLt

I was out and about at several suburban office parks recently, and word around the Camp Fire is that this is just the tip of the ice berg.

[Dan]

I assume the "Madison building" is the former site of the Madison Theatre?

[DetroitPlanner]

I'm surprised that the writer has no idea that people who live in Detroit pay a 2.5 percent income tax to the City. A long time ago it was going to drop to 2 percent as part of the casino deal, but that got suspended by KK and approved by JG.

[Genesyxx]

For those who can't place the building:

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&um...ed=0CAcQnwIwAA

[DetroitDad]

I'm surprised that the writer has no idea that people who live in Detroit pay a 2.5 percent income tax to the City. A long time ago it was going to drop to 2 percent as part of the casino deal, but that got suspended by KK and approved by JG.

A good thing. Detroit will prosper from it's income tax while communities reliant on property tax see dwindling income well into this decade in the best case scenario, and long into the next in the worst cases. Detroit tax structure may be better to withstand the coming economic changes, right?

[esp1986]

ummmm... there's more than one madison building??

[DetroitScooter]

Someone needs to re-open that funky coffee shop at Griswold and Grand River! Business opportunity!
Actually, I'd be surprised if it's still available... these things tend to get 'sorted out' just before a nearby business moves in. Maybe Cafe D'Mongo will finally open for lunch? Can you imagine that?

[DetroitDad]

ummmm... there's more than one madison building??

It's the Julius Madison Building, it's the one in the link above. The Julius Madison Building is technically in the center of the block, sandwiched between two other properties.

[DetroitPlanner]

A good thing. Detroit will prosper from it's income tax while communities reliant on property tax see dwindling income well into this decade in the best case scenario, and long into the next in the worst cases. Detroit tax structure may be better to withstand the coming economic changes, right?

Detroit's tax structure needs to be more like its competition [[the suburbs) if it ever wants to be sustainable. Otherwise it will not attract high wage earners nor companies. Remember, we live in a multi-nuclii metropolis where there are jobs spread evenly. This situation has excervated under the last 50 years.

[French777]

An Additional 2,000 Jobs in the CBD... Sounds like great news to me! An additional 2,000 office workers hopefully buying lunch downtown once in awhile, and/or possibly looking for a house/ apartment in the city! Would downtown office vacancy rates dip a little because of this?

[DetroitDad]

Detroit's tax structure needs to be more like its competition [[the suburbs) if it ever wants to be sustainable. Otherwise it will not attract high wage earners nor companies. Remember, we live in a multi-nuclii metropolis where there are jobs spread evenly. This situation has excervated under the last 50 years.

I have strong reason to believe the next twenty years are going to be very different from the past fifty years. The City of Detroit is on a better path right now than majority [[but not all) of the nation's suburbs.

[Downtown Dave]

DetroitScooter, I expect you'll see Urban Bean coffee house reopen soon. Now that Capitol Park has been completed and additional workers are coming downtown, the owner is optimistic for a relaunch. I spoke with him yesterday.

[bartock]

What are bullet wholes?

Washington Blvd. is where I bravely tread for six days a week, gathering wood and berries for lunch, killing zombies a la I Am Legend, before heading home to my glittering palatial estate in the "inner ring."

Just kidding, after filtering it out, I say strong city core is good...the shifting of jobs from area of the region to the other is, eh. Hopefully, new jobs will move into the city and region, and not just migrate from one part of it to the other.

[kryptonite]

Hopefully, new jobs will move into the city and region, and not just migrate from one part of it to the other.

For real, if all that happens is that some suburban jobs move into the city leaving vacancies in their former offices, then that only benefits downtown. That's fine but it would be nice to see more start-ups, out of state moves into Detroit/metro Detroit and expansions. Last week the news was that GalaxE [[I think?) was moving into the 1001 Woodward building and hiring some 100 people. Also yesterday someone posted on Dyes that the federal government is looking at Detroit for a regional office for patent applications processing. Those sorts of job moves improve the overall employment scenario of the metro area. I also read that some small start-ups and out of state businesses are opening offices in the Tech Town area north of WSU. For the most part they are very small employers but are the types of jobs that a modern post-industrial city needs to attract to transition from an industrial to a diversified economic base.

Still, the Madison Bldg. news is good for Downtown. I think most people agree that for metro Detroit to grow again in the future that the Downtown/Midtown areas will drive the change for the entire region.

[tkelly1986]

I am thrilled that they are committing to a new building, but I don't really understand the rationale for this one....I assume it is not the end product HQ they have planned and is simply a temporary site. However, why a building with such a low profile?

Moreover, how many people do they plan on putting in this building?

[esp1986]

The building in question is not very big, there is no way they are going to fit many people in there, probably not more than 400-500, absolute tops and I doubt that much...

[esp1986]

Dan Duggan of Crains reports that it is, in fact, actually the former Madison Theatre Building at Witherell and Broadway that is under contract, not the Julius Madison Building on Washington.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...troit-building

This building is far larger than the Julius Madison building, and was recently "rebuilt/added onto", making a whole lot more sense for Quicken... hopefully this can finally spur a Broderick Tower Renovation.

[rjlj]

The DetSnooze at it again.

[raptor56]

Dan Duggan of Crains reports that it is, in fact, actually the former Madison Theatre Building at Witherell and Broadway that is under contract, not the Julius Madison Building on Washington.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...troit-building

This building is far larger than the Julius Madison building, and was recently "rebuilt/added onto", making a whole lot more sense for Quicken... hopefully this can finally spur a Broderick Tower Renovation.

I would be overjoyed at a Broderick Tower renovation. I'm kind of surprised they haven't snapped up the David Whitney building yet, with its People Mover stop and all.

[TheKage]

I haven't checked up on it recently, but last spring the Broderick Tower was announcing a renovation project that was supposed to lead to new residential openings sometime this year. Wonder how far behind schedule they are?
http://fromthekage.blogspot.com/2010...g-planned.html

[Pcm]

I'd say they're about 10 years behind schedule.

[raptor56]

I haven't checked up on it recently, but last spring the Broderick Tower was announcing a renovation project that was supposed to lead to new residential openings sometime this year. Wonder how far behind schedule they are?
http://fromthekage.blogspot.com/2010...g-planned.html

I would venture to bet if you looked back in the dYes archives, you'd find this same post, about 5 times a year, for the past 5 years. Until Higgins sells the place, NOTHING will happen.

[TheKage]

Thanks for the info raptor. It's sad, really. It'd be cool to at least get a look inside that building to see if anything's been done.

[mikeg19]

Anybody have pictures of the building

[gdogslim]

This story tells a mouthfull about Quicken Loans management.
I do love that they are investing in the D, but...
- Why are they buying a building now? Did they miscalculate the fact that they need about 80-100 sq ft per worker in an office.?
- Dan Gilbert is admitting that Detroit is not competitive with other cities in Michigan, with the 1.25-2% income tax, hence the income raise to lure worker bees to the hive.
- Is Quicken/Gilbert going to help the Livonia citizens out because of his decision to relocate?
- I applaud Gilbert's altruistic goals, but why would a company purchase real estate that is already available on the market for a company that has yet to appear on the scene wanting that real estate? Why not save the money and wait until a company needs the space then invest the funds to help them out.

- Another question I think everyone has is how many loans did Quicken Loans make in the City of Detroit in the last ten years, what type of loans were made, and how much profit did Quicken make off of the Detroit loans made.
Also what subsidies is Quicken/Gilbert receiving from the taxpayers to move to Detroit????????
Just a though that popped in my head