| Detroit Free Press
Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Nov. 21, 2002 - After sitting cold and empty for decades, another famous
downtown Detroit hotel may soon see new life.
The council blessed a plan by a group of Detroit and Chicago investors that would put $52 million in the project. The Fort Shelby would house two Holiday Inns, one a 124-room short-term hotel, the other a Staybridge 110-room extended-stay hotel. In addition, the plan calls for creation of 77 residential apartments, which would later be converted to condominiums. Art Papapanos, vice president of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp. and an authorized agent for the Detroit Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, said earlier this week that the plan also calls for retail stores on the first floor and a parking structure. "We're excited about this, and the city is excited about it," Papapanos said. "This rehabilitation means a lot to the city because it fills the need for hotel space and housing. It will also help bring convention activity, bring businesses downtown and help us prepare for the 2006 Super Bowl." The Fort Shelby, located at West Lafayette and First Street, was built in two parts. The first was built in 1916 as a 10-story structure with a neo-Georgian character that was designed by the Chicago firm Schmidt, Garden and Martin. In 1927, Albert Kahn designed an adjacent 21-story tower that was fully integrated into the earlier structure. Although approved by the council, the Shelby plan still faces hurdles. It needs approvals at the state level, and the developers need to win financing for their ambitious project. Financing could be problematic because banks are reluctant to lend money for hotel deals, given the state of the economy. That's one of the reasons a proposed Hilton in Harmonie Park was stalled for the past year. Groundbreaking for that project is set for early next month. The city is expected to ask the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for a loan, possibly for $15 million to $16 million, for the Shelby project. Mayoral spokesman Jamaine Dickens said: "This could be a great addition to our downtown. As we continue moving this city forward and continuing bringing high-quality development like this, more people will visit our city and see that Detroit is on the move." Some of the other hotel renovations face considerable obstacles. Some architects have questioned the structural integrity of the Book-Cadillac, while bankers have expressed doubts about whether a renovation could be accomplished at a low enough cost to guarantee a profit for developers. Meanwhile, the city wants to tear down the Statler Hilton, despite the fact the state recently spent $4.4 million to remove environmental contamination from the building at Washington Boulevard and Grand Circus Park. City officials say it doesn't make financial sense to save the Statler, but preservationists are gearing up to try to rescue it. Yet another historic hotel -- the Madison Lenox -- is also to be torn down next year. The hotel, across from the Detroit Athletic Club, is owned by Ilitch Holdings Inc. In August, the Downtown Development Authority approved a $700,000 low-interest loan to the company to tear down the abandoned hotel. The lot will be used for about 100 parking spaces, and Ilitch Holdings could receive an additional $340,000 in loans from the DDA if it has a redevelopment plan for the site by June 2005. By John Gallagher, Jennifer Dixon and Erik Lords -----To see more of the Detroit Free Press, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.freep.com (c) 2002, Detroit Free Press. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News. MAR, |
