  Bussey Member Username: Bussey Post Number: 512 Registered: 12-2003 |
Looking at Google Earth over downtown it seems that most of the large barren areas might be gone in the near future and an actual critical mass may take hold within the expressway loop (Lodge/Fisher/Chrysler). With the New MGM taking over the sea of surface lots that used to reside next to DTE, the new FBI offices filling in the old Michigan Plaza campus and the proposed new Wings Arena filling in the Foxtown landscape there should be very little vacant land tracts within our "Loop". The last large space left might be the Hudson's Block. Only time will tell... | ||
Detroitbill Member Username: Detroitbill Post Number: 242 Registered: 09-2006 |
Its kinda nice to see this, and you still have the market researchers say there is no market for retail,,, Go figure,,, you have commercial, residential, large amounts of visitor traffic for sports and events...even Howell has more retail,, Those of us living down here think they must be blind. | ||
Ramcharger Member Username: Ramcharger Post Number: 248 Registered: 05-2006 |
Retailers are put off by the city’s exorbitant insurance rates and the prospect of crime coupled with the fact that the Detroit Police Department does nothing to protect private property. Their only focus seems to be on violent crime. | ||
Andylinn Member Username: Andylinn Post Number: 402 Registered: 04-2006 |
i thought this thread was going to be about the critical mass bike ride in grand circus park! oh, well. this is still interesting - i agree with you bussey. | ||
Downtown_remix Member Username: Downtown_remix Post Number: 165 Registered: 03-2007 |
Ok so it looks like the wild fires have ceased. Fort Detoi't has been surrounded by massive redevelopement from the west waterway to the east West river walk Mexican town Cork Town MGM GRAND WOODBRIDGE MOTOR CITY CASINO WOODBRIDGE ESTATES II RED WINGS TOWN FOX TOWN COMERICA-FORD FIELD GREEKTOWN CASINO HOTEL REVAMPED EASTERN MARKET THRIVING LAFFIYETTE DISTRICT NEW EAST RIVERFRONT CONDO DEVELOPEMENt equals critical mass..period | ||
Matt Member Username: Matt Post Number: 1184 Registered: 10-2003 |
I swear to god, if I didn't know any better I would say Downtown Remix is Danny. | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 987 Registered: 10-2006 |
The research has already been done. Retail would have to be almost stupid to not move into downtown Detroit: http://www.downtowndetroit.org /ddp/newsroom/Downtown_Detroit _in_Focus.pdf | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 988 Registered: 10-2006 |
"Conclusion: Downtown Detroit has a strong and growing residential market with demand for 1,700 new housing units over the next five years.Downtown and adjacent neighborhoods demonstrate 389,000 sq.ft. of unmet demand for clothing and clothing accessories; furniture and home furnishings; electronics and appliances; building materials and garden equipment; and an additional 125,000 sq.ft. of unmet demand for grocery stores. Thriving entertainment venues are driving an emerging Midwestern perception of downtown Detroit as a visitor destination for trendy adults.Highly desirable parcels are available through the city of Detroit for signature headquarters-style office developments.Investors and developers across a variety of markets looking for opportunities in southeast Michigan should strongly consider downtown Detroit." | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2757 Registered: 02-2005 |
All those developments will be great, Bussey, and will really fill in our downtown. All Woodward needs is a Hudson's Block and Monroe Block development to be completely enclosed south of GCP. Still, look at all the surface parking lots around downtown. We CAN get critical mass in terms of enough people downtown to finally, finally get retailers down there (even though they should already be moving). But in terms of infill and the density of downtown, we have 20-50 years of vigorous development left to go. Look at Bricktown...more than half parking lots. Look at the parking lots surrounding Comerica on the north and west...right on Woodward! Look at the surface parking on Madison between the Opera House and CoPa...right were we should have Wrigley-style rowhouses peering into Comerica Park. What about all the surface parking around Gratiot/75? The massive undeveloped lot by the FMHOJ, and all the lots around the courthouse. Broadway is a nice little strip of storefronts but it still has large areas of surface parking front the street. And look at all the lots along Lafayette west of Griswold. We have decimated our urban fabric, and though we'll never re-create what we had, we can, with time, rebuild our downtown. | ||
Eric Member Username: Eric Post Number: 813 Registered: 11-2004 |
quote: Danny's brother? | ||
Downtown_remix Member Username: Downtown_remix Post Number: 166 Registered: 03-2007 |
ooo Danny must be a very smart guy, very insightful. | ||
Emu_steve Member Username: Emu_steve Post Number: 290 Registered: 11-2006 |
quote: "Looking at Google Earth over downtown it seems that most of the large barren areas might be gone in the near future and an actual critical mass may take hold within the expressway loop (Lodge/Fisher/Chrysler)." Agree and this has been a theme of mine since I've been on this forum. Use the old 'divide and conquer' technique. MGM ate up what 30 acres; DTE is landscaping a bunch; Ilitch appears ready to eat up 4 blocks. I assume that once the arena is nearly finished the adjacent blocks will fall to development. Once the big parcels are gone it is easy to cherry pick the small ones. | ||
Detourdetroit Member Username: Detourdetroit Post Number: 298 Registered: 10-2003 |
it goes back to the idea of knitting a fine and refined fabric. per mackinaw, we HAVE decimated our fabric and are still want to consolidate and superimpose so, eg what at one point in the past was our tenderloin/later plum street on the near west side is not organically and more richly redeveloped but rather plunked upon with casinos and parking decks, DTE's and a sea of parking... not that new construction is the issue: it's mega development, meta car thinking that discriminates against finer grained land use and eliminates creative, mixed use development patterns that lend to a more socio dynamic and higher quality sense of place. so in the final assessment, yes our downtown may be filled in over time, but the result is bar food. yea, i thought this would be about bikes. | ||
Danindc Member Username: Danindc Post Number: 2458 Registered: 10-2003 |
Agreed, detour. No one has mentioned the detrimental affects of superblock developments on pedestrian traffic. | ||
Bussey Member Username: Bussey Post Number: 513 Registered: 12-2003 |
Living near WSU for the past 4 years, specifically speaking towards the stretch of I-94 in between John R and the Lodge, has left me dreaming about the grandeurs that would follow a covering of these freeway trenches. Imagine the "Loop" being filled over with green space, commercial buildings, hell I'd even settle for MORE parking lots! You can at least walk through parking lots. We should start a grassroots campaign to fill in the freeways, especially downtown. To everyone who bought a "garden Loft" over in Brush Park, you could actually have a Garden to look at instead of I-75. Who da thunk it! | ||
Downtown_remix Member Username: Downtown_remix Post Number: 250 Registered: 03-2007 |
We have super blocks for sure but a few adjustments are taking place. DTE ENERGY CAMPUS, just mentioned in a previous post just broke ground thursday on a park like setting with seating, trees, and art, totally complementing MGM and its super block. many areas of downtown, Harmony park, greektown, capital park, grand circus park, CBC, Woodward, are exact opposite. So we gotta tae everything as it comes | ||
Downtown_remix Member Username: Downtown_remix Post Number: 252 Registered: 03-2007 |
bump | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 5969 Registered: 02-2004 |
Eric, Nice try but I'm not the Downtown remix. You have to look and read people's codespeak before you make your comments. | ||
Ray Member Username: Ray Post Number: 899 Registered: 06-2004 |
Well put,Detour Detroit. | ||
Ray Member Username: Ray Post Number: 900 Registered: 06-2004 |
Well put,Detour Detroit. | ||
Rocket_city Member Username: Rocket_city Post Number: 280 Registered: 04-2006 |
Bussy, I'm with ya, but the new Woodward overpass isn't even complete yet. |
