  Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn Post Number: 855 Registered: 04-2006 |
I just wanted to know if anyone has any information on the Wurlitzer building. It seems to always play second fiddle to its more popular neighbor, the Metropolitan building. I once heard that the owner in the 1980s fell down the elevator shaft... is that true? I believe it is currently owned by Paul Curtis, who bought it for around 200k around 1995, and is asking over 2 million for it! It's not even listed in the AIA guide to detroit, even though it's a marvelous building built in the Renaissance revival style. | ||
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936 Post Number: 3140 Registered: 01-2005 |
"I once heard that the owner in the 1980s fell down the elevator shaft... is that true?" Sure was. The owner and his wife lived on the 8th floor, had converted it to a loft area. Early one morning just about 1980 he went through the open doors of the elevator shaft and had a great fall, the elevator wasn't there. Appropriately, the ground floor was leased to a religious book store, so he had plenty of icons around for his last second. Can't remember his name; I'll put the fog to work and post if it comes to me. Didn't surprise me too much. The elevators in that building were always getting stuck and acting up in strange ways. | ||
Viziondetroit Member Username: Viziondetroit Post Number: 1702 Registered: 11-2003 |
....that had to suck | ||
Dannyv Member Username: Dannyv Post Number: 203 Registered: 08-2007 |
Things were looking up after that. | ||
The_rock Member Username: The_rock Post Number: 2347 Registered: 11-2003 |
The last I heard was that the current owner is a Bloomfield Hills attorney who is behind on his property taxes. Many years ago, I had a lawsuit defending the building owners when a lady suffered injury in an alleged elevator plunge of a few feet which was suspect to say the least. I believe that back then they had corporate owners, not the individual I refer to. | ||
Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn Post Number: 856 Registered: 04-2006 |
ray 1936, do you happen to know a rough date on that event so that I could get a newspaper source? It sounds pretty horrific! | ||
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936 Post Number: 3142 Registered: 01-2005 |
Andy, I can only pin it down to about 1980, give or take two years. The fog in my brain lifted; the man's name was Nick Jenin, and his wife's name was Ann. Good people. Ooops, just found him on the social security death index. This will help (cut/paste!): Nicholas JENIN Birth Date: 2 Sep 1905 Death Date: Feb 1978 Social Security Number: 369-01-2718 State or Territory Where Number Was Issued: Michigan | ||
Llyn Member Username: Llyn Post Number: 1928 Registered: 06-2004 |
Maybe the attorney will lose the buidling in taxes and finally someone can take a shot at renovation without having to pay a multi-million dollar price tag for the building. | ||
Doma Member Username: Doma Post Number: 1 Registered: 05-2008 |
I have walked through this building within the last 2 years. I was told then that I could buy it for under $1,000,000 if I was serious. It is beat up but could be AWESOME luxury apartments. Every floor is easily 3000sf w/10ft ceilings (or higher). Very open floorplan, check it out. | ||
Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn Post Number: 860 Registered: 04-2006 |
still in fairly beautiful condition inside though the basement is flooded! | ||
Docmo Member Username: Docmo Post Number: 341 Registered: 10-2005 |
Doma, Maybe you can get a discount on the purchase price due to the human excrement which has resided in the entryway for the last two months. Unfortunately, the homeless find it a suitable rest area. | ||
Gambling_man Member Username: Gambling_man Post Number: 1077 Registered: 11-2003 |
Docmo, someone cleans it up regularly, it's just that someone keeps excrementing it back.... | ||
Grumpyoldlady Member Username: Grumpyoldlady Post Number: 94 Registered: 06-2005 |
That was not very smart...putting someone's name, birthdate, and SS# out for any and all to see. Even though they are dead, couldn't a new identity be created with the info? If not, I apologize for the post. | ||
Erikto Member Username: Erikto Post Number: 704 Registered: 11-2003 |
Any interior pics of this building? I really like it, too. One morning about 5 years ago a friend and I were taking pictures of it and the guy who owns Small Plates came out and talked to us about the building. We'd have checked out his establishment, but instead we wandered well out of the area for the rest of the day. It's a lovely building, but it must be in terrible shape if it can be purchased for under a million dollars, I should think. | ||
56packman Member Username: 56packman Post Number: 2277 Registered: 12-2005 |
A DY member posted about this building sometime last year, he, in a professional capacity had examined the building and stated that water had worked its way between the face brick and the structure and froze, pulling the brick away, making the salvation/restoration difficult if not economically improbable. | ||
Supersport Member Username: Supersport Post Number: 11792 Registered: 10-2003 |
56-  Sorry, professional capacities have no place here.  | ||
Burnsie Member Username: Burnsie Post Number: 1391 Registered: 11-2003 |
Grumpyoldlady-- Anybody can look up old SS numbers on the death indexes, so I wouldn't worry about Ray1936's post. | ||
Gianni Member Username: Gianni Post Number: 359 Registered: 05-2004 |
I remember reading maybe ten years ago or more that the building had all the copper wires and anything else of value pulled out of it by scrappers. Plus the basement being flooded and full of all kind of toxic stuff including PCBs from electrical transformers. This was long before the current scrapper plague. I worked next door at the "Hartz Building" in 1978 and 1979. I remember the Wurlitzer building was mostly vacant then (I seem to recall a sign for Travelers Aid Society on the ground floor but it didn't look like they were ever open) and seemed like it looked like it had been vacant for several years. So this beautiful building has probably been out of commission for longer than the Book Cadillac. (Message edited by Gianni on May 19, 2008) | ||
Gnome Member Username: Gnome Post Number: 1262 Registered: 08-2007 |
+detroit&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&g l=us, 34 page PDF survey in HTML form Document created by New Detroit Interesting collection of various downtown buildings. wurlitzer, hartz,Savoyard, etc. for example: Building Name:Wurlitzer BuildingBuilding Address:1507 Broadway Street, Detroit, MI, 48226 Physical Description:13 Story, White Terra-Cotta FaçadeSquare Footage:46,000 Special Features:Rated in top Architectural Design Downtown DetroitHistorical Significance:Part of Grand Circus Park Historic District Year Built:1926 Current Use:VacantRental Rate (If applicable):N/A Occupancy Percentage:N/A Space Available for Lease/Type:N/A Parking Availability  pera House Garage & Street Parking New Use Potential:Condos/Lofts/Office &Retail Major Improvements Needed/Cost: N/A Contact Person/Manager/Phone No.: Paul D. Curtis - 313 331-5265 Owner/Entity Name:Wurlitzer Building, LLCComments: | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 6513 Registered: 11-2003 |
He missed the elvator and got the shaft, that's what jjaba's remembers. How about a shoutout for the those Wurlitzer Organs in theaters and churches? jjaba. | ||
56packman Member Username: 56packman Post Number: 2282 Registered: 12-2005 |
Jjaba--a little bit of very arcane data for you: the Wurlitzer organ that used to be in the Punch and Judy theatre in Grosse Pointe was once a store demonstrator at the Wurlitzer building. | ||
Johnlodge Member Username: Johnlodge Post Number: 6728 Registered: 10-2003 |
So what originally happened in this Wurlitzer building? I have an old Wurley electric piano, very cool. They sold them there? Built them, imported them? Wurlitzer also made Juke Boxes I think, right? | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 6844 Registered: 08-2004 |
I believe that Wurlitzer made the organs in their HQ town of East Tonawanda, New York. 56packman, is that correct? | ||
56packman Member Username: 56packman Post Number: 2283 Registered: 12-2005 |
Wurlitzer began in 1856 by importing German violins and selling them from a store in Cincinnati. From there they bought a piano factory in North Tonawanda, NY and the company headquarters moved there. In 1910 they began the manufacture of pipe organs, becoming the best known brand of orchestral pipe organs for silent film accompaniment. They made band organs for merry-go-rounds, orchestrions (a large cabinet containing a piano, drums, tuned percussions and organ pipes, played from a paper roll), player pianos, non-player pianos. They purchased a piano factory in DeKalb, IL to make their piano line. Wurlitzer moved into the manufacture of jukeboxes in the 1930s as the pipe organ division was slowing down due to the advent of sound films. Wurlitzer also made phonographs, radios and refrigerators for department stores to "brand." During WWII they made airplane parts and radar equipment. The pipe organ division was discontinued in 1942. After WWII they began the manufacture of amplified reed organs which in time were just electronic organs. In the 1970s there were Wurlitzer stores in shopping malls selling pianos and organs. They designed and built their own electric piano, basically after the Fender-Rhoades, some musicians preferred the Wurlitzer due to its "dirty" sound. The company floundered in the early 80s when the home organ market died a sudden death. The name is still being used by a German firm that makes replica jukeboxes and there is an Asian piano being marketed under the Wurlitzer name today. | ||
Johnlodge Member Username: Johnlodge Post Number: 6735 Registered: 10-2003 |
Thanks Packman. Yeah that electric piano is sweet. This is what I have:  That's from the web, but it's exactly that. | ||
Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn Post Number: 863 Registered: 04-2006 |
thanks for the history pacman. so was the building here offices? | ||
56packman Member Username: 56packman Post Number: 2289 Registered: 12-2005 |
No, a big, vertically arranged store, offices on the upper floors | ||
Ravine Member Username: Ravine Post Number: 2293 Registered: 01-2006 |
I have swiped the data which Grumpyoldlady scolded Ray1936 for posting and am now masquerading as a 102-year-old guy with excellent, April-fresh credit but not a lot of spare time. I think I'll hire a foxy stripper and charge it to my brand-spanking-new Gold Card. Thanks, Ray; you're a pal! | ||
Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn Post Number: 866 Registered: 04-2006 |
just some info I discovered. according to the skyscraper page, Wurlitzer is about 151 feet, and the 109th tallest structure in Detroit... kinda interesting... |
