An iconic spot in downtown Detroit is one step closer redevelopment.
The former Hudson’s department store has been a city-owned underground parking garage since the Hudson’s building was demolished in 1998.
But officials with Detroit’s Downtown Development Authority gave the tentative go-ahead for a new high-rise development there Wednesday.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said the deal still needs a few final approvals. The City Council still needs to OK elements of the deal, including the transfer of the parking garage to the developer for $15 million.
The state-appointed Financial Review Commission that oversees Detroit’s post-bankruptcy finances also needs to sign off, as will the final building plans.
“But we expect those things will be finalized by December, and we expect groundbreaking next April,” Duggan said.
Duggan calls the resurgence of interest in downtown living “remarkable.”
“I never thought I’d see a high-rise apartment building on the old Hudson’s site. And to couple that with 200,000-plus square feet of commercial space … of course, people shop where they live,” Duggan said.
The developer, Bedrock Detroit, is the real estate arm of Quicken Loans’ CEO Dan Gilbert’s “family of companies.” Its parent company, Rock Ventures, received the “air rights” over the site as part of a 2007 deal to lure Quicken Loans headquarters to downtown Detroit.
The development agreement requires Bedrock to develop some affordable housing units in and around downtown Detroit. It also binds Bedrock to hiring at least 50% Detroit residents for the construction work.
