 
D_mcc
Member
Username: D_mcc
Post Number: 646
Registered: 12-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 11:00 am: |    |
Pictures? |
Livernoisyard
Member
Username: Livernoisyard
Post Number: 5806
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 11:31 am: | |
Eight hundred and thirty-three posts (834 with this one...) chronicling the progress on a highrise apartment/hotel? Somebody there leaves a light on, and some DY poster feels compelled to gush over that and announce/broadcast that eagerly awaited tidbit of "progress."
Will there be a comparable number of DY posts a few years (at most) when this project fails in its current form and the BC becomes reorganized for the benefit of its creditors?
Kimberly-Clark already came to the realization of the nonfeasibility of the BC before it begged off that project over four years ago. And KC was using much lower costs in its calculations.
A much more costly version (the current one) means that profitablity would be even harder to attain than that envisioned by KC. And there were supposed to have been approximately ten more condos than currently. I see financial disaster looming. Hopefully, no additional costs would get stuck with the taxpayers then. |
Detroitstar
Member
Username: Detroitstar
Post Number: 1043
Registered: 01-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 11:40 am: | |
It wouldnt be a redevelopment thread without LY jumping in here to piss on the parade.
Based on the success and reputation built by their company over many years of new and rehab developments, I'm going to trust Ferchill on this one. With their resume, do you really think they would get involved with a project that would be a sure loss? |
Rustic
Member
Username: Rustic
Post Number: 3217
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 11:44 am: | |
LY, that kinda post is sooo DY 2002 ... Brian left the forum years ago and even Skulker apparently skulked away a while ago ... |
Swingline
Member
Username: Swingline
Post Number: 1083
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 11:47 am: | |
LY is on a mission to rid the planet of Pollyanna's. This is admirable public service, no? Be grateful. Until he achieves the eradication he seeks, he will continue refusing to contribute a positive post. |
Hardhat
Member
Username: Hardhat
Post Number: 234
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:06 pm: | |
Now, now Swingline, LY has written some good and interesting stuff about the area's rail system.
Oh wait, he doesn't see any future in that, either.
Never mind. |
Rjlj
Member
Username: Rjlj
Post Number: 498
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:06 pm: | |
I partly agree with you Livernoisyard, people always ask for pictures rather than going downtown to see it themselves. Why don't they go themselves? Well, that is part of the problem and could ultimately lead to the demise of this project.
On a side note, what is your experience Livernoisyard and data that says this project will fail? |
D_mcc
Member
Username: D_mcc
Post Number: 648
Registered: 12-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:29 pm: | |
^^^because some of us have jobs and don't have the ability to pick up and head down there to see if scaffolding has been removed... |
Rjlj
Member
Username: Rjlj
Post Number: 499
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:41 pm: | |
I love watching scaffolding being removed.
Head downtown tonight or this weekend or when you have time. Move downtown, work downtown or both. Everyone says they support the city but everyone just sits back and waits without doing anything. |
Lo_to_d
Member
Username: Lo_to_d
Post Number: 64
Registered: 07-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:45 pm: | |
Not only does he not have any substantial evidence for failure, he is a fear mongoring hater. People shouldn't spew ignorant negativity on this site. It's bad karma and probably helps stop them from doing anything great with their life. |
Wpitonya
Member
Username: Wpitonya
Post Number: 69
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:45 pm: | |
I live in NY and can't just go to downtown Detroit this weekend. I will be there in late June. In the mean time, I would love to see progress pics! Just because someone asks for pics doesn't necessarily mean that they are a lazy suburbanite (although may be the case many times). |
D_mcc
Member
Username: D_mcc
Post Number: 649
Registered: 12-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 12:55 pm: | |
WP...don't bother...progress schmogress...you apparently don't support the city or its rebirth...so stop asking for pics :-P
Never thought I would encounter a DYes Elitist |
Cman710
Member
Username: Cman710
Post Number: 423
Registered: 07-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:06 pm: | |
I also live in NY, and really appreciate it when people post pictures updating the progress. So keep them coming!
I hope to visit Detroit soon after the BC opens, and have plans to stay there! |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1364
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:12 pm: | |
Livernoisyard wrote, "...chronicling the progress on a highrise apartment/hotel?"
Newsflash: it's much more than that. It's the near-miraculous bringing back to life of a huge historic hotel that was abandoned for dead over two decades ago. This is restoration of an abandoned building on a scale that probably hasn't been done anywhere else in the Midwest, possibly the country.
There's nothing wrong with critical analysis of a project's chances, but Livernoisyard's tone has always suggested that he WANTS the B-C and other projects to fail. That's just sick. |
Wpitonya
Member
Username: Wpitonya
Post Number: 70
Registered: 08-2005
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:14 pm: | |
Don't support the city??? If there were jobs there, I would definately live in Midtown. Every time I visit, I spend as much time and money in the city as possible.
You're right, D_mcc, I don't support the city. Maybe you should visit hotfudge to display your negativity.
My father's band used to play weddings at the BC and I am a historic preservationist...I care very much and support the BC and the city....and I WANT SOME PROGRESS PICS!! |
Kid_dynamite
Member
Username: Kid_dynamite
Post Number: 495
Registered: 06-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:17 pm: | |
I think he saying that in jest to you WP...he was directing that towards Rjlj. |
Livernoisyard
Member
Username: Livernoisyard
Post Number: 5808
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:30 pm: | |
Most of the BC articles and accounts are but puff pieces and kind of stuff as seen on places like DY. I had come across a critical, neutral BC piece from last May that describes Detroit events yet to come as being the canary in the coal mine. Those events turned out terribly negative, and based upon them, the BC is doomed to financial failure, according to its author--a NY-based real-estate investor who maintains and contributes articles to his own Web and blog sites.
I spent the past few minutes trying to locate it. When found, I could repost parts of it. It's also somewhere in the archived material here on DY. So, I might relocate it myself that way. |
Rsa
Member
Username: Rsa
Post Number: 1450
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:35 pm: | |
would you like a little cheese with that whine LY? oh wait, sorry, i forgot that we're not supposed to feed the trolls. |
401don
Member
Username: 401don
Post Number: 361
Registered: 11-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 09, 2008 - 1:43 pm: | |
Not sure the BC will be hugely profitable, but I think there's a market for a 4 star hotel downtown that didn't exist 20 yrs. ago. The Marriott properties, Hilton Garden, casinos have their niche and will be fine. I worry more about the Sheraton and Shelby properties unless there's a big increase in mid-size conventions at Cobo, will hinges on the refurbishment more than the increase in sq. footage. |
Sean_of_detroit
Member
Username: Sean_of_detroit
Post Number: 81
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 1:00 am: | |
I always find Ly's negative posts interesting. I find this Wikipedia article even fits exactly what many of us do.
Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P ollyanna
Optimists keep us going, while pessimists make us look at reality. I don't know. I think maybe we shouldn't overlook anything just because of attitude. Just because someones a pessimist (or optimist) doesn't mean they're wrong. Right? I don't know, maybe it makes them both wrong?
That being said, I think that the building can be profitable. The restoration of these structures in the CBD should have a affect on property values. More importantly, renovating this building has brought the city much good publicity. On top of that, this building stirs up good memories in many older suburbanites, something that is arguably important right now. I think that all that is a warrant for the tax incentives.
I agree it's a good time to start putting more resources into the neighborhoods. But, renovation or demolition of these structures is important. Downtown is our city signature, and a large part of our local and national image. A CBD without all this blight might go a long way. Plus, I'm guessing nobody would pay for demolition but the city. So if the city has to spend the money on any building downtown, it might as well be to help someone profit from it. |
Lifeinmontage
Member
Username: Lifeinmontage
Post Number: 103
Registered: 10-2007
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 2:46 am: | |
". . .the BC is doomed to financial failure, according to its author--a NY-based real-estate investor who maintains and contributes articles to his own Web and blog sites."
oh yea, trust a new york-centrist egomaniac. i'm tired of new yorkers thinking that manhattan is the center of the world and that everything else needs to meet their standards. i deal with them everyday, living in new york. i actually got in a fight with a friend of mine when he insisted that detroit was no better than a "dirty asshole". new yorkers have class. . . |
Cman710
Member
Username: Cman710
Post Number: 426
Registered: 07-2006
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 10:56 am: | |
Lifeinmontage, you are doing exactly what you are deriding your friend in New York for doing by stereotyping all New Yorkers (the way that he is stereotyping Detroit), which completely saps your post of any credibility.
Many contributors on this Forum are from New York (including me), and the vast majority are great supporters of Detroit. We may not get to visit as frequently as we would like, but we love the city and really care about it. |
Murph_in_th
Member
Username: Murph_in_th
Post Number: 1
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 1:26 pm: | |
Some of us have never had the good fortune to visit Detroit at all, but have been following the progress of this building online for six years. I will come see it in person when the hotel opens. Not all of us can "run downtown" when we like. I do run a website that posts weekly downtown pics following the progress of my fair city's recovering downtown; so I know the pressures on the photographers to update.
Glad to finally join in the banter. I for one enjoy hearing that the lift is coming down and other trivialities. Your Book Caddy gives many others; both near and far, hope for the future!
Some of us lost OUR beautiful vacant hotels in the last few years.
-Murph in Terre Haute, Indiana
webmaster, terrehautehouse.net |
Busterwmu
Member
Username: Busterwmu
Post Number: 463
Registered: 09-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 2:52 pm: | |
Murph, welcome to the forum. The Book Cadillac may go under. Hopefully it will not. Either way, it's a monumental step for historic building preservation in the city. I'm already saving money to spend a night there after it opens. Doing my small part....
Anyone have any recent photos? Mine way up the thread were from over a month ago now. |
Ptpelee
Member
Username: Ptpelee
Post Number: 33
Registered: 09-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 3:05 pm: | |
As a member of St. Aloyisus church, we plan on having my son's First Communion dinner there. He has been watching the renovations as is already excited about having it there! |
Murph_in_th
Member
Username: Murph_in_th
Post Number: 2
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 6:03 pm: | |
Thanks for the welcome Busterwmu! I have appreciated every picture that is posted here. Although Terre Haute is much smaller than Detroit, I believe we faced a similar fate in the 20th century. We are primarily an industrial city and many of our industries have left. We also have seen renewed hope in our last Mayor's administration and he also made some enemies. Sometimes I wonder if they ever met; like at a conference or something...lol. Anyway, thanks everyone for this great thread. Ptpelee, I think that's great, what you have planned. Best wishes on that special occasion! Seeing others excited for their downtowns despite all odds keeps me encouraged. Not to hijack the thread, but if you are interested in our downtown recovery, I encourage you to visit my site: www.terrehautehouse.net
Sadly, as mentioned, we lost our grand hotel--vacant for 35 years. But, we didn't have the money. Now, ironically, we have a brand new Hilton Garden Inn on the same site. It may not be as grand, but it's sure better than an empty lot or another corner pharmacy. Currently, the same developer is turning our abandoned newspaper building of 1912 into a small extended-stay hotel and a new location for our Children's Museum. They give me access to the building weekly for progress photos and have even been nice enough to use some of my photos on their website. Both of these projects are doing great things for our downtown. Sorry so long-winded. It's just exciting to share with other folks with like minded interests. Cheers! |
Warrenite84
Member
Username: Warrenite84
Post Number: 293
Registered: 01-2007
| | Posted on Thursday, April 10, 2008 - 8:40 pm: | |
I have to say that it may get a little difficult to see many more marked improvements to the BC when they finish up on the outside. Hopefully, those who work there or in charge of the project can post more interior updates to satisfy the renovation/preservation fix.  |
Sean_of_detroit
Member
Username: Sean_of_detroit
Post Number: 86
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 11, 2008 - 1:09 am: | |
Welcome Murph! I know many others are lurking and watching Detroit to see what works and what fails, and to see if it can be done. I'm sure some of the history buffs on this site would be interested in some of your cities ideas and improvements that could help or apply to us if you posted them in the Non Detroit section once in awhile.
Be sure to tell us what you think of the renovations if you stay there in the near future. I'm guessing that there will end up being a thread on that topic at some point. |
Detroitstar
Member
Username: Detroitstar
Post Number: 1056
Registered: 01-2006
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 15, 2008 - 11:01 pm: | |
I my lunch in the median of Washington Blvd while taking in the BC construction experience. I came up with a couple of thoughts...
Was there any exterior lighting scheme back in the day, perhaps along the decorative Michigan Ave facade? Could there be a classy way to light the building?
While sitting at Comerica Prk tonight I thought it would be really cool to see the copper roof lit up at night! |
Grumpyoldlady
Member
Username: Grumpyoldlady
Post Number: 54
Registered: 06-2005
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 15, 2008 - 11:56 pm: | |
Anyone have any advance info on room rates? I hope they don't price them so high that they make a night at the B/C out of range for most. I'd love to see some really, really low rates at least in the beginning so folks would stay there and see just what the place has to offer. |
Danny
Member
Username: Danny
Post Number: 7287
Registered: 02-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 12:21 am: | |
The parking garage structure next to the Book Cadillac Hotel is almost done, but no plans to build future lofts on top of the structure. |
Gistok
Member
Username: Gistok
Post Number: 6655
Registered: 08-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 10:00 am: | |
LOL... LY is a negative Nellie? Naw! Can't be!!
Rjlj... he thinks that the Book-Cadillac will fail because all those folks who post here from out of state aren't going to drive here to check it out for themselves, and so he's using that as logic to join LY in the "B-C Doomed to Fail Club".
Funny that! |
Busterwmu
Member
Username: Busterwmu
Post Number: 469
Registered: 09-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 10:36 am: | |
Anyone know if Westin is planning to restore the neon "Book-Cadillac" signage on the side facing west down Michigan Ave? I always thought that was a cool icon for that part of town. |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1368
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 11:00 am: | |
Busterwmu-- Do you mean the sign on the top of the building? That was installed when Sheraton took over and said "SHERATON CADILLAC" from the beginning, never Book-Cadillac.
However, there was a sign on the Washington marquee (perhaps Michigan, too) in pre-Sheraton days that said BOOK CADILLAC and lit up at night. |
Rjlj
Member
Username: Rjlj
Post Number: 505
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 11:33 am: | |
Contraire Giztok, I think the BC will be a success. I want Downtown Detroit to not be a ghost town. My point is that people on this board (and in Detroit in General) think that things just happen without hard work and support. Everyone can sit back and look at the pretty building and say how nice it is but that is not going to keep it alive. I do worry about the other hotels that exist and that are going up. Private development is doing a great job of providing great hotels while the city is lagging and doing nothing to bring the masses of people required to sustain these hotels i.e. a bigger COBO. They are shooting themselves in the foot. |
Busterwmu
Member
Username: Busterwmu
Post Number: 470
Registered: 09-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 16, 2008 - 12:20 pm: | |
Burnsie, indeed I meant the sign on the roof. For the longest time, only the "CADILLAC" portion remained, and thus I thought it said "Book" when apparently it really said "SHERATON." Thanks for the correction. I now revise my question to wonder if WESTIN will put any such light up roof signage back on top of the building, perhaps like Sheraton did back in the day. |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1369
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, April 17, 2008 - 6:04 pm: | |
There's a new photo on Flickr this week that shows the absence of the recently removed buckhoist. |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1371
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, April 19, 2008 - 2:53 pm: | |
Friday April 18, 9:15 am ET
--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Westin Book Cadillac Detroit: When:
Tuesday, April 22, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Where:
Westin Book Cadillac Detroit
Venetian Ballroom (under construction) on 4th Level
What:
Construction update; grand opening celebration
plan; announcement of celebrity chef restaurant
Who:
Speakers include:
-- Westin Book Cadillac Detroit General Manager
Tim Freisen
-- The Ferchill Group Chairman & CEO John
Ferchill
-- Detroit Economic Growth Development
President & CEO George Jackson
-- Celebrity Chef (to be introduced)
Invited guests include Westin Book Cadillac Detroit clients and residence owners; gala committee members; community leaders
How:
Use entrance area on State Street between Shelby.
Complimentary valet parking; escorts to elevator.
More information:
-- A grand opening committee has been working
for several months to plan a two-day
celebration scheduled for October 24 and
25, 2008. The hotel officially opens on
October 1.
-- Media are invited to tour the construction
site before and after the news briefing.
-- Hard hats and goggles will be provided; flat
shoes are required; ladies must wear slacks.
Contact:
For Westin Book Cadillac Detroit
Joyce Cusmano, 313-885-8228
On April 22, 313-580-0925 |
Royce
Member
Username: Royce
Post Number: 2608
Registered: 07-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 3:06 am: | |
As the Griswold garage goes in, I see that it extends into Shelby. Will Shelby remain open as a one-way street or will it be closed off between Michigan and State streets? |
Mackinaw
Member
Username: Mackinaw
Post Number: 4644
Registered: 02-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 8:53 am: | |
Cutting that off will change the prospects for Capitol Park redevelopment...in a bad way. Not another downtown cul de sac, please. |
Archy
Member
Username: Archy
Post Number: 50
Registered: 07-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 10:58 am: | |
Shelby becomes the entrance for the parking garage. The other half will connect the alley. There will be pedestrian access to Capitol park though. And and entrance into the Book Caddy, so it could be a nice "cul de sac" |
Charlottepaul
Member
Username: Charlottepaul
Post Number: 2454
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 12:30 pm: | |
Keep in mind that the mirror image of Capitol Park (the triangle where the downtown library is at), doesn't have its road on each side connecting down to the block south--Library doesn't connect down to Monroe (Compuware parking deck is in the way), and you don't hear people complaining about that. http://www.flickr.com/photos/s outhen/159029463/in/set-720575 94123428660/ |
Detroitman32
Member
Username: Detroitman32
Post Number: 26
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 1:08 pm: | |
Busterwmu:I recall seeing a drawing showing such a sign on the hotel. But that drawing showed the extension being equal height and in appearance to the main building, so it is questionable wether there will be a sign. |
Charlottepaul
Member
Username: Charlottepaul
Post Number: 2458
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 1:18 pm: | |
Cadillac sign shows in this rendering: http://www.downtowndetroit.org /ddp/images/housing/book_cadil lac_rendering.jpg |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1372
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 1:22 pm: | |
That rendering also shows the small 6th floor windows, which have actually been covered over in the renovation. |
Detroitman32
Member
Username: Detroitman32
Post Number: 27
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 1:28 pm: | |
Charlottepaul: That's the one. |
Charlottepaul
Member
Username: Charlottepaul
Post Number: 2460
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, April 20, 2008 - 1:30 pm: | |
Yeah. It is a different (I believe earlier) rendering from what appears on the Westin's web site: http://www.starwoodhotels.com/ westin/property/photos/index.h tml?propertyID=3001#photo_sect ion_0Link |
Greatlakes
Member
Username: Greatlakes
Post Number: 188
Registered: 07-2007
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 2:13 am: | |
Photos of the interior and more at freep.com.
(Message edited by GreatLakes on April 22, 2008) |
Greatlakes
Member
Username: Greatlakes
Post Number: 189
Registered: 07-2007
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 2:19 am: | |
|
Gistok
Member
Username: Gistok
Post Number: 6686
Registered: 08-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 2:56 am: | |
OK, I just looked at the 15 pics on the Free website....
1) I don't much care for putting modern square windows into arched openings in the Venetian Ballroom... HOWEVER... since they will be covered by heavy fancy curtains, it's not a big deal, since it's likely they'll not be noticed.
2) Putting fake balconies on the Venetian Ballroom is rather tacky... HOWEVER... since I'm sure they will be dressed up to look real, it's not a big deal in this age of high security. There really was no reason for a balcony overlook of the ballroom.
3) I like the Garden Court so far.
4) Although I was aghast a while back at the fact that they removed the fancy gilded plaster lobby ceiling, they are putting in very ornate Corinthian columns that match the exterior... so the lobby may end up looking historical after all, and not some dull modern lobby.
... pleased so far... |
Gistok
Member
Username: Gistok
Post Number: 6687
Registered: 08-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 3:07 am: | |
My bad, these plaster Corinthian capitals are going into the Lobby Bar, not the Lobby. Will have to wait and see what the Lobby will look like...
|
Gistok
Member
Username: Gistok
Post Number: 6688
Registered: 08-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 3:25 am: | |
After studying the 2 pics.... I assume that these are the same spaces after all (one preliminary, one actual). It looks like there are some lobby design changes.
|
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1374
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 9:22 am: | |
Gistok-- those windows in the Venetian Ballroom EXACTLY match the dimensions of the original windows (though the lite arrangement is different than the original). They have always been right-angled. From the 1924 opening, there was always some fascia and curtain trickery to make them seem arched from the inside. Just look at any historical photo of the exterior: the windows on the Ballroom Floor and Ballroom Mezzanine were always squarish.
As for the fake balconies-- why couldn't they have been restored to their original, usable dimensions? Didn't someone on here once post something about it having to do with fire codes?
The Italian Garden has been narrowed by a third but looks far better than its last "renovation" decades ago which subdivided it.
(Message edited by Burnsie on April 22, 2008) |
Wschnitt
Member
Username: Wschnitt
Post Number: 79
Registered: 07-2007
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 9:32 am: | |
Has anyone seen pictures of the interior of the addition? I take it from the lack of pictures that it will be rather plain. |
Gistok
Member
Username: Gistok
Post Number: 6692
Registered: 08-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 3:06 pm: | |
Burnsie, after I posted, I looked at the historic post card of the grand ballroom and saw that, except the upper windows were nearly covered by heavy drapery. I guess it just appears odd when there's no drapery over the window.
And in the lobby... it looks like the Corinthian capitals are going to be much fancier and larger than the preliminary design shows. The preliminary design also shows the window arches as being much more subdued. It looks like the final result will be double arched window recesses.
Maybe the lobby columns and pilasters will have not only the massive Acanthus leaves of the Corinthian capitals (as seen on the exterior), but also the "fluting" of the exterior pilasters/columns. By adding these exterior touches to the interior, it would be in keeping with authentic Louis Kamper designs.
Adding fluting would be an improvement over just simple unadorned squared pilasters/columns. Although Scagliola marbling wouldn't be bad either. |
Designerguy24
Member
Username: Designerguy24
Post Number: 118
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - 3:45 pm: | |
Book Cadillac hotel opening to feature street party
The developers of the Westin Book Cadillac Detroit promised today to throw a giant street party on Washington Boulevard in front of the historic hotel on Friday, Oct. 24, the day before the hotel’s grand opening.
Details are to come, but the party will be part of a two-day celebratory reopening of the hotel. The Ferchill Group, a Cleveland-based development company, is in the final stages of a $180-million renovation of the classic hotel, which opened in 1924 but closed in 1984.
Meanwhile, Timothy Freisen, the Westin’s general manager, said the hotel would open a recruitment office around Labor Day to hire the hundreds of people needed to staff the hotel.
At the press conference today, Cleveland-based celebrity chef Michael Symon spoke about his plans for Roast, the steakhouse he plans to open at the Westin Book Cadillac.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs .dll/article?AID=/20080422/BUS INESS06/80422052 |
Boynamedsue
Member
Username: Boynamedsue
Post Number: 43
Registered: 03-2005
| | Posted on Tuesday, May 27, 2008 - 5:49 pm: | |
http://www.detroitnews.com/app s/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/200805 27/BIZ/805270301 |
Beantown
Member
Username: Beantown
Post Number: 73
Registered: 10-2006
| | Posted on Friday, May 30, 2008 - 5:55 pm: | |
There is a really cool pick of the two Book buildings on Flickr.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21156655@N03/2522643912/sizes/l/
Not sure if the person deserving all the credit is on this forum or not. |
