Patterson Terrace is Starting to Look a Whole Lot Better

July, 2013

December, 2014

December, 2016

Little Caesars Arena

The Scott at Brush Park

The Scott at Brush Park

Little Caesars Arena

Brush Park Village North

It looks like Brush Park Village North is on the verge of finally being completed almost ten years after initial construction began.

More Coverage

Little Caesars Arena

Ransom Gillis House Update 9-24-15

Ransom Gillis House Update

Rehab Addict

Take a look at "Rehab Addict" Nicole Curtis' previous Detroit rehab as well as her latest.

 The "Grand" House

The Ransom Gillis House

Brush Park Deletions

As we noted back in July of 2013, when the city of Detroit filed for bankruptcy, it listed several city properties that pose an "Imminent and identifiable harm to the public health or safety." That list contained a number of properties within Brush Park that were scheduled to be demolished.

It appears that the city has remained true to its word. The Angela and another unnamed apartment building at the corner of Winder and Beaubiean have already been demolish.

 The Angela - July, 2013

 The Angela - May, 2014

February, 2009

May, 2014

Clean up work has also started on Patterson Terrace. However, it remains to be seen if this is prep work for another demolition or the beginning of a renovation.

The city only owns of one the seven units in Patterson Terrace and it is neither of the units they claimed on their 2013 filing. Almass Downtown Real Estate owns three units and Elana McKinney owns the remaining three. Almass has applied to purchase the city owned unit, but neither Almass nor Mckinney have filed a request to remove the building from the emergency demo list. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.

Patterson Terrace - July, 2013 

Patterson Terrace - April 2014

First Unitarian Church Destroyed by Fire

First Unitarian Church on Woodward in Midtown was originally built in 1890,  and partially redesigned for the widening of Woodward in the mid-1930s. Passing hands through multiple denominations after the Unitarians left it for a new home on Cass in the late 1930s, its sanctuary remained largely in-tact until it was hit by several fires in the 2000s.  It has been abandoned for some time and on the morning of  May 10, 2014 it was completely destroyed by a fire.

Brush Park Hit List

Something that was overlooked within Detroit's bankruptcy filing was an attachment listing all properties that the city owns that pose an "Imminent and identifiable harm to the public health or safety." A few of the properties on the list are located in Brush Park.  The City has identified those properties as being "structurally unsound and in danger of collapse." The City goes on to state that the properties are "scheduled for demolition."

The properties in question are:

203 and 209 Erskine (Patterson Terrace)

229 Edmund Place (The Glover House)

2457 Beaubien Street (The Angela)

 2486 Beaubien Street

Burn Notice

Back in April it was reported that this 103 year old home in Brush Park was intentionally set on fire by drunken Tigers fans on opening day. Located on Watson Street, the house was once known as Mercy Hall Hospital. It served as a care facility for indigent cancer patients from 1931 until the 1940's when the hospital moved to 269 Mack.

\

\

DPD Crime Lab

The infamous Detroit Police Department Crime Lab inside the former Stephen Foster School in Brush Park.

Beaubien Party Store

 July, 2004

November, 2012

This is what the building looked like in 1976, and just after its collapse in 2012.

Nouveau Ruins?

A certain never completed Brush Park development was found exposed to the elements last month.  Construction began in 2007, but the site sits abandoned today having never been occupied.  How long will it be before it is reclaimed by nature?

Just Another Hole in the Ground

245 Edmund Place never really stood a chance.

 April, 2005

November, 2012

Another Brush Park Setback

The Inn at 97 Winder in Brush Park is up for sale. My only hope is that someone will buy it soon and put it to a fitting use.  I would hate to see it end up in the same situation that the Lucian Moore House restoration is in.

$2.5M price tag on Detroit mansion an eye-opener | The Detroit News

Baby Steps?

It looks like the last vacant building on 100 block Watson street in Brush Park will be saved.  The Devon building, built in 1905, is slated to be converted into four 1,300 square feet condos.  With the rehabilitation of the concrete building, the restoration of this particular block will be complete.  That's not to say that it couldn't use a few more buildings for infill.  The art deco facade will be saved, but the rear of the building will be demolished and rebuilt with floor to ceiling windows.  This will also make room for new garages to be build along the alley.

Construction is set to begin in the first quarter of 2011.  However, work will not begin until all four units are sold.  The expected price per unit will be $220,000.

Does the Castle Building Have Secrets?

There seems to be a bit of controversy surrounding fire and the immediate demolition of the Luben Apartments.

At first, one would assume that this fire was not unlike other house fires in the neighborhood.  Perhaps a squatter started a fire inside to keep warm, fell asleep and a stray ember ignited a floorboard?  There has been talk of two people living in the back of the building for the past few weeks, which is where the blaze appears to have started, so that theory sounds plausible.

However, I heard another rumor on the scene today.  Supposedly, the building was purchased recently with the intention of rehabilitating it but the owner went bankrupt.

The speed and manor in which the building was leveled is what is raising the most questions.  The demolition team was already on the scene before the fire department had even left.  Despite vigorous protests by neighborhood residents, the fire department insisted that the building had to be taken down to protect arson investigators that would return at a later date.

Armed police were on the scene while neighbors shouted at the demolition company.  Dust supression was not used to prevent asbestos and other particles from becoming airborne.  Apparently this job had to be done fast!  Only the front of the building was ordered to be demolished.  The facade was the only architecturally interesting feature of the building. Naturally, being seen as the only justification for saving the building, that was the first section to be toppled.  The rear of the building remains standing and the rubble is still burning.

Was this an unfortunate accident, an insurance claim, or some sort of land clearance?