Michigan Real Estate News

Timely  |  Relevant  |  Informative

Renowned Detroit Hotel Sale and Renovations Pending

The Westin Book Cadillac hotel in downtown Detroit is under a pending deal. Chicago-based Oxford Capital Group, the same company that broke ground on a new Godfrey Hotel in Corktown,  is buying the 453-room hotel. Downtown Detroit hotels took a hit during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Book Cadillac has been delinquent on its mortgage since spring 2020. With the sale, Oxford Capital will assume $77 million in debt to prevent the hotel from going into foreclosure. The company will spend at least $16.5 million on renovations and maintenance. It’s seeking a 12-year Commercial Redevelopment tax break that’s valued at over $26 million.

Corktown Parking Deck Sold for $15.6 Million

The Ford Motor Company sold a 1,250+ space parking deck for an estimated $15.6 million. Howard Luckoff, Jim Ketai and the Rakolta family who make up the Corktown Mobility Hub LLC purchased the property. Devon Industrial Group is currently constructing the deck. It should be finished by the second quarter next year. Ford will hold the master lease for the garage, and Luckoff and Ketai’s Vokal Ventures will operate it. According to Richard Bardelli, Ford’s construction manager in Corktown, the sale is in keeping with Ford’s plan to bring on development partners. The deck includes an autonomous vehicle testing area, e-bike and e-scooter stations, charging stations for electric vehicles and automated payment technology and smart guidance systems.

Detroit’s Revitalization Could Have A New Focus

The global pandemic has turned many things upside down. The office markets around the U.S. are one of those things. Congress may offer developers incentives to repurpose old office buildings into residential, institutional, hotel or mixed-use spaces. While Mayor Mike Duggan has come out in support of the Revitalizing Downtowns Act, area developers do not have active plans to utilize it should the law be passed. The number of Detroit’s residential units lags behind other downtown areas. The legislation isn’t limited to downtown redevelopments but could be used to convert old office properties in the suburban locations into new uses as well.