Bedrock Gives Tour of Book Tower Progress
/in Detroit /by Tracy WillisOn Thursday, Bedrock gave a tour of its renovation progress on the historic Book Tower. The renovations include restoration of the original limestone and masonry facade, replacing 2,400 period accurate windows, and repurposing former office space into 229 residential units. It will also offer retail, hotel and office space when completed. The $313 million project also includes the 13-story Book Building structure. The development will include retail in the basement and first floor, office space on the second and third floors, and the ROOST Apartment Hotel will occupy floors four to eight, featuring 118 studio, one and two-bedroom units. A rooftop bar and outdoor terrace space are also in the plans.
Sugar Loaf Resort Demolition Is Underway
/in Northern Michigan /by Tracy WillisExcavators have begun demolition of Sugar Loaf Resort in Leelanau County. The demolition should be completed by early January, but questions continue to loom. Who is financing the demolition, and what’s on the horizon for the site? The resort operated from the early 1960s until it closed in 2000 and was a premier winter destination. It had two golf courses, a 144,000-square-foot lodge and hotel, a restaurant, two pools, a 3.500-foot paved airstrip, indoor tennis, 72 townhouses, five chairlifts and a wastewater treatment plant. Ross Satterwhite is a local real estate adviser and the spokesperson for the unknown owners.
Michigan Township Vetoes Solar Farms
/in SE Michigan /by Tracy WillisInvenergy, a multinational energy company, has offered Washtenaw County farmers $1,100 a year for each acre of land utilized for solar panels. Landowners agreed to the deal, but the township didn’t. Some residents fear electromagnetic radiation. Township officials are disenchanted with the company’s sign up efforts before consulting local government. They’re also skeptical about Invenergy’s promises of boosted tax revenue. Others worry about the aesthetics of the panels and their infringement on hunting land. Bridgewater landowners feel that the deal was turned down based on assumptions and misinformation.
Auburn Hills’ Volkswagen Building Sells to Redico
/in SE Michigan /by Tracy WillisSouthfield-based Redico LLC and New York City-based Mavik Capital Management LP have bought the Volkswagen of America Inc. building in Auburn Hills. The building at 3800 Hamlin Road sold for an undisclosed price. Details of the structure of the joint venture are not public. Volkswagen had considered moving its Auburn Hills operations to Southfield but opted to sign a new lease in the building that had been owned by MAK Real Estate Investment Inc. Once the new lease was signed, MAK Real Estate Investment began exploring putting the building up for sale. The building sits on 19 acres.
Port Authority Raises Concerns Over Boblo Building Destruction
/in Detroit /by Tracy WillisDetroit-Wayne County Port Authority alleges that the Ambassador Port Co. is not taking the appropriate steps toward demolishing the Boblo building. According to the port authority’s law firm, Ambassador Port is acting in violation of its Master Concession Agreement with DWCPA. The razing of the Boblo building is included in a pending deal between the two parties. The agreement would end the Master Concession Agreement, and Ambassador Port would gain ownership of the dock site from the port authority. In exchange, it would pay $1 million outright, waive the authority’s $2 million debt, and pay $2 million in blight removal and cleanup work. The deal requires Detroit City Council approval to move forward. The possibility of the building’s destruction before the pending deal is finalized is concerning to the port authority.
Fairlane Town Center and The Mall at Partridge Creek Change Management
/in SE Michigan /by Tracy WillisFairlane Town Center in Dearborn and The Mall at Partridge Creek in Clinton Township are now being managed by Syracuse, N.Y.-based Spinoso Real Estate Group LLC. Spinoso is marketing the two malls for lease. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Partridge Creek was under financial stress when Starwood Capital Partners defaulted on a $725 million loan that included the shopping center and three other mall properties in Michigan. It recently entered receivership. Fairlane Town Center entered receivership last year.