The Rise and Fall of Detroit’s Renaissance Center…

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Күн бұрын

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@herschelwright4663 2 ай бұрын

The Ren Cen is a significant Detroit icon. It would be quite a shame if it were to be demolished. Hopefully they will find a new use for it before it’s too late.

@texanfournow 2 ай бұрын

In 2004, when the center tower was a Marriott hotel, I stayed in a room on the 70th floor. Quite the view for a hotel room!

@forgottenplaces9780 2 ай бұрын

@@texanfournow i was at the restaurant/bar there last year, very nice views.

@tomhext1229 2 ай бұрын

The Marriot is still open

@creativemindplay 2 ай бұрын

It's still the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center, I feel obligated to tell you again!

@texanfournow 2 ай бұрын

@@creativemindplay Got it, thanks. Maybe I will stay there again (altho the prices--yikes!). BTW, I was born in Detroit, educated at Wayne State University (two degrees), and my first FT job was in southwest Detroit. My father was born in Detroit, too, and there is a street near Brush Park named after a great uncle, Philo Parsons, who was a founder of the First National Bank of Detroit. So...the city of Detroit is in my blood, wherever I may be.

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

@texanfournow thanks for that! Detroit has been on the right track for years now and we have been watching.

@AdrianMunch Ай бұрын

Was a beautiful building. Went to several events held there, Was in a room on the 71st floor. Great view. Sunday brunch once. Was great place. That was 90’s,

@BrianWalker-c9e 2 ай бұрын

It would be a shame if they tore down Detroit's most iconic building! It would be like if they tore down the Empire State Building in NYC, or the Willis Tower in Chicago!

@DowStUnD86 2 ай бұрын

What is most likely the plan right now is to keep the center tower, and tear down the rest.

@onlinesavant Ай бұрын

@@DowStUnD86That's just YOUR speculation. The most likely scenario is that the whole thing will (And should.) be torn down. Makes no sense to keep useless white elephants around.

@aaronflowers8881 Ай бұрын

Yes! That's exactly what I compare it to! The Empire State building.

@yannick245 4 күн бұрын

Don't use the _"W-word"!_ It will forever be the Sears Tower!

@AndrewLachowicz-r9i 2 ай бұрын

The hotel is brilliant! Great location: walkable to downtown and the water front, just stayed there last August. Also the layout is really unique. At first I got lost every time I returned but grew to like it because it was always a different path home!

@stickynorth 2 ай бұрын

Tearing it down would be a terrible idea. Converting it to a more mixed use complex with hundreds if not thousands of apartments? A great idea! As would be finishing the overall complex since part of it was never built to begin with!

@js8805 2 ай бұрын

I agree, would be great to suddenly have a massive increase in apartments/condos in the downtown. I think it's pretty costly to go through and change office space into living space though.

@classic.cameras 2 ай бұрын

This building may have not been designed that way. Such as the extra weight apartments would cause could collapse the building. Mean it may be too expensive to reubild the building to accommodate but its not a bad idea.

@realazduffman 2 ай бұрын

Seems like it is already mixed use and not working. Don't throw good money after bad

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

It would be 10 figures to repurpose any one of the towers. The Marriott isn't going anywhere and a second, luxury Marriott Hotel is under construction at the JLA Site. So maybe a partial demolition

@marshallr4797 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for the video. Visited Detroit in June 2023 and stayed at Marriott renaissance. Neat place. Enjoyed the GM exhibits. The place definitely felt dated.

@js8805 2 ай бұрын

I like that it's dated. I was in Detroit not that long ago and walked through quite a few old buildings just to check them out (Guardian Bldg, Book Tower, Penobscot Bldg, etc.). I'm glad those buildings weren't updated during their lifetime. If the RenCen can be repurposed as an asset to the downtown, in 2045 people will go through it and marvel at things like I did in the Guardian Building.

@ColeslawCustard 2 ай бұрын

It’s weird because there are modern aspects in GM world area, but for sure the building is a little dated.

@James-rm7sr 2 ай бұрын

Why tear it down? Convert the 4 buildings into housing and the center be the commercial tower providing jobs, places to shop like a grocery store and more. It can be still be useful. I don't know to many cities willing to tear down their iconic towers.

@jeanieirwin4747 Ай бұрын

Shame the city lost sight of why the city needed a building that set Detroit on a new pathway. It was beautiful and the place to go. I stayed in the hotel and found the center amazing. The decline of GM was the beginning of the end for RC. Sad.

@lionsfan7500 2 ай бұрын

That would be heartbreaking if they tear down the center! Great video as usual.

@markbrown4039 2 ай бұрын

The hotel is still Michigan's tallest building. The complex was a complete joke in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s. It was cut off from the rest of downtown, it was easy to get lost in, and the layout was beyond confusing. When GM bought the building in 1996, they completely transformed it.

@fastlane1205 2 ай бұрын

I’m very confident they will not tear it down, too much of a public outrage as it’s the defining building of the Detroit skyline, it’s the first thing people see when they see the Detroit skyline, I’m confident they’ll just make it into something else

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

Hudson's Detroit tower is now part of the skyline

@dmax5678 Ай бұрын

@@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback The Hudson's tower isn't the tallest building in the state, and it never set any world records when it opened. The Renaissance Center did: Tallest hotel in the world and largest privately funded development project in the world.

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@dmax5678 the Hudson's development opens next year.

@overbanked 2 ай бұрын

This would be the equivalent of San Francisco tearing down the TransAmerica Pyramid or Miami tearing down the Freedom Tower

@XCambodianBuddha 2 ай бұрын

Or NYC tearing down The Empire State Building

@7mileDem 2 ай бұрын

I can see Dan Gilbert buying the Ren Cen and turning the building into something cool. That building is way under utilized.

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

Working from home did it in

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia Ай бұрын

The title of this video is misleading. Its as if he said that to get hits on his site. To be frank, all skyscrapers are suffering all over the USA, especially in California. Why not mention that in the video??/ It has to do with the work environment moving to peoples homes. Anyhow, this building is for sale.. It doesn't mean it is going out and being torn down. They have some potential buyers right now. And the city is on a rise, unlike what the video says. Feeding off of Detroit's distant past. Now Detroit is thriving, both in downtown and its neighborhoods. To add, its population is growing!!! You make it sound like everything is still crumbling in Detroit's overall economy. Also Detroit just built a new skyscraper as well, which GM wants to relocate to. I do not feel the building will go down and if it does something more bigger and more impressive will take its place. This man feeds off distant history, which is history. Turn the page and move forward and stop being so negative to get hits. Let's talk about Detroit's Central Train Station (Brain Station) that is to rival Silicon Valley. It is also the tallest train station in the world and now open back up for business. Ford has moved into it and brought his top notch engineers with him to leap the city to the future. Its progressing, not regressing. note

@7mileDem 18 күн бұрын

@@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia 💥💯

@jeffreynowak1294 2 ай бұрын

Thanks for this interesting video. I enjoyed it, as I live in a suburb of Detroit. I know that Ford Motor Company had Offices in the RenCen, prior to GM taking over much of the space. The Millender Center right across the street is a unique mixed use building that was ahead of its time when built in the Eighties.

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia Ай бұрын

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@@jeffreynowak1294 are you aware of what Ford has done in Corktown recently?

@jeffreynowak1294 Ай бұрын

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Yes! I am aware of the Train Station renovation in Corktown.

@FameyFamous 2 ай бұрын

I visited the RenCen many times for the free Rockin’ the Riverfront concerts. It’s a shame that these events didn’t recover after the pandemic.

@Snorlax_808 2 ай бұрын

I can’t imagine Dan Gilbert not making an effort to buy it.

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia Ай бұрын

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@@Snorlax_808 Gilbert and Bedrock are indeed involved! This is only half the story.

@anakinskyogre1037 2 ай бұрын

im a detroiter most people are opposed to tearing it down and dont want to see it go the city itself isnt liking that idea either so theres hope but I cant confirm anything on the fate of the ren cen yet

@starxlr7863 2 ай бұрын

Same here, the more people that I talk to are totally opposed to seeing any part of this building destroyed. This is one of the most iconic buildings anywhere. Anybody that sees this building instantly think Detroit.

@ronparrish6666 Ай бұрын

It looks nice from the Windsor Casino

@gemnifan6045 2 ай бұрын

Since this is super trendy they should make it a mixed use retail and apartment space since houseing downtown is hot making apartments does seem smart

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia Ай бұрын

@forgottenplaces9780 Ай бұрын

@@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia you act as if you know me, you dont, I have in fact been to detroit many times and I was just at Renaissance center in person last November, it was mostly empty as the articles I have researched said, there also is legitimate discussion by the Detroit Local news media that the building is being considered for demolition. Detroit is better than it was but theres still plenty of blight and dereliction once you leave the downtown and midtown core, which is a problem for downtown development. I have seen it i have been there, I even have 4-5 videos on this channel of me being there, so dont make assumptions that I dont know what I am talking about when I do, because your wrong…

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia Ай бұрын

@@forgottenplaces9780 yes I worked in Detroit neighborhoods too but you don’t make no balance. You act like this is an isolated issue in the USA. Many cities are having issues filling their vacancies, skyscrapers and high rise businesses. SF California in particular. Why did you have to start out with negative news on Detroits past? Why not move forward. Past is the past. Don’t be frozen in the past.

@forgottenplaces9780 Ай бұрын

@@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia i guess you havent seen the videos on this channel, i have videos about many many cities

@leobethge6002 2 ай бұрын

Make it downtown housing and community center, services and grocery, daycare in the huge lower levels.

@johanmichael6624 2 ай бұрын

Hey Swedish person here! They said on our news a few years back that Detroit was doing much better and on its way back. Is this still true? I think its a beautiful building and a Detroit landmark

@burtlewand5915 2 ай бұрын

I lived in the area my whole life and my family lived in the city proper for about 80 years before my time. People don't realize how far the city had fallen by the time of bankruptcy bankruptcy. Things are much better now in Detroit but there is still a lot of work to do. The major issue with the RenCen, as we call it here, is that GM has never been into properly management or revitalization the way Ford has been. There is soooo much more going on downtown than even a decade ago, but thr RenCen is kind of by itself. If they tear down some towers, it would be the medium size ones. Those small ones are under different ownership. Either way, I think it could have unforseen good effects because the rencen is where most of the vacant office space is now. If they tear those towers down, demand to build new office buildings might come sooner.

@Skyman08 2 ай бұрын

The downtown area is becoming beautiful and there are lots of new buildings projects, but other than downtown, and midtown the city as a whole never really recovered.

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@johanmichael6624 very true! The revival is gaining momentum, and the story is getting harder to suppress!

@a.kaiser8965 11 күн бұрын

I think if you pulled up Google and looked at the satellite map of Detroit; its momentum has just shifted away from the river. I was a big supporter of keeping this complex, but I think it is just too massive to keep.. I would take it all down and start over. It kind of has that division/relationship like Cincinnati has with its riverfront (like Fort Washington way divides the Banks with the business district (for now)). In this case Detroit built a giant office complex, Cincinnati with Riverfront Stadium. If the Renaissance Center was built where the tallest tower was placed as an endpoint with Woodward Ave (Dodge Fountain location) and the towers sprung up around it, then I would say try to save it, I think it would have had a better access point to the center of downtown and could have competed in this environment, transforming it into more residential, etc...I just wish more downtowns would come with master plans. yes environments change, but the riverfront could be a 50-year project. and it should be designed to facilitate flow into downtown.

@OneGina83 2 ай бұрын

I miss the movie theater and shopping.

@schalitz1 2 ай бұрын

It's gonna be a sad day when GM moves out.

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

They are moving up the street a few blocks into the new Hudson's Detroit. Bedrock is now involved in the future of the Ren Cen.

@DavidLimofLimReport 2 ай бұрын

DId you put this up because the Tigers won today? :-D

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

They won today

@jdallas3369 2 ай бұрын

Put a Walmart in it, or a Meijer...need a big box store downtown.

@brucebeamon5460 2 ай бұрын

Meijer is about a mile down the street on Jefferson…. I’d like a Target to be here..too bad they changed there mind about THAT plan up on Woodward 😒

@OneGina83 2 ай бұрын

@@brucebeamon5460target did give Detroit a warehouse so we get our orders faster.not what we wanted.

@jdallas3369 2 ай бұрын

@@brucebeamon5460 That Meijer is not a full Meijer it's just food and liquor

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@@jdallas3369 and a Whole Foods on Woodward. No food desert here!

@littlelamb4305 16 күн бұрын

Geez, such a GREAT IDEA! I'm not a fan of a BIG Box where upscale boutiques were the original tenants, but there is no denying the impact that would have on the downtown area.

@jack_dagnel 2 ай бұрын

I can see them knocking down the two other towers that stand alone. Makes no sense have 7 empty towers

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

Maybe 2 of the 4 taller ones too.

@dmax5678 Ай бұрын

@@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback That would be a travesty. Don't mutilate an icon.

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@dmax5678 well, it would also be a travesty to have empty skyscrapers sitting around for "abandoned Detroit " videos. But with Bedrock in charge we know a timely decision will be made. Refurbish? It would cost a billion for each tower! So we'll be watching.

@NathanBrooks-x1c 2 ай бұрын

Business builds these skyscrapers and then doesn’t take care of them, GM has used their headquarters up and is going to leave the city and the taxpayers holding the bag.

@herchelleonwood7463 2 ай бұрын

in the 80's it was to easy to get lost in the Ren Cen, a buddy of mine used to get coke cola from a dude that stayed there [ kids don't use drugs ] it was the iran-contra reagan stuff,, best stuff we EVER GOT..

@thomasheyart7033 Ай бұрын

Suburbanization was not the cause of detroit's downfall. Democrats imposing high taxes was the cause of suburbanization. As Democrats imposed higher taxes on both people and businesses, both people and then businesses left the city for lower taxes and better services.

@JAKPM 25 күн бұрын

The 1967 riots didn’t help, I don’t believe Detroit ever recovered from that event.

@yannick245 4 күн бұрын

WHITE FLIGHT is the cause for the downfall of the City of Detroit, period! Without the tax money of the more wealthy White population, the city was bound to financially get in trouble/finally go bankrupt! If the city limits would be larger and they could've taxed Detroit's politically unincorporated suburbs, Detroit wouldn't struggle financially. So yes! Suburbanization ruined Detroit financially. I can't see how Republican rule could've prevented this fate. Less taxation definitely wouldn't have stopped it!

@mxr572 Ай бұрын

vs toronto which has many residential towers in the downtown and below rail tracks to the lakeshore. cities need people to reside therein to be prosperous. also Ont. government did not allow separation of suburbs from the city core. Toronto functions.

@whywhere1768 2 ай бұрын

i think it’s an eyesore on the detroit skyline

@XCambodianBuddha 2 ай бұрын

If I see one more idiotic post about turning it into affordable housing, I'm gonna lose all control!!!! 😡😡😡😡

@c0t0d0s7 Ай бұрын

HI I’M NEW HERE HOW ABOUT TURNING IT INTO AFFORDABLE HOUSING?

@seand67 2 ай бұрын

Center tower is an EXACT duplicate of Atlanta's Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel......

@dmax5678 Ай бұрын

The two buildings were designed during the same time period by the same architect.

@JessmanChicken86 2 ай бұрын

I appreciate the proper grammar.

@neilmoryson 2 ай бұрын

Looks like a bigger version of the Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles (another terribly dated behemoth of a building), or the Peachtree Plaza in Atlanta. Dated, dated, dated. There's no other way to describe them.

@brucebeamon5460 2 ай бұрын

SAME ARCHITECT ( John Portman ) Designed all three of them …. It was an exciting place to be in the beginning. I worked at the the Mc Donald’s for an time and it would be EXTREMELY BUSY especially during lunch… They also had top named designer stores in one of the tower mall areas as well as a Godiva Chocolate and FAO Schwartz toy store UNFORTUNATELY I don’t believe any of them stayed any longer than I’m guessing 3 or 4 years ….. I’m still wondering why they got rid of the Movie Theater in.. 2015 it seemed to have decent crowds but was always too cold

@shawnnixon403 2 ай бұрын

A mall & theater

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback 2 ай бұрын

Cool video! I'd like to add that GM will move up the street into the new Hudson's Detroit. Bedrock is now involved in the Ren Cen future. There's simply no need for such huge office buildings anymore, and it's costly to convert. Bedrock converted the Book Tower (10 figures and 7 years) and the Ren Cen would be 4 times that!

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia Ай бұрын

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@MichiganUSASingaporeSEAsia thanks and totally agree! We have been observing it all for the last 10 years and it's amazing how the negativity persists in the name of getting clicks. Even candidates for public office are unaware of Detroit's progress! Well, we're doing what we can for the home town! Go Detroit.

@linkrun21 2 ай бұрын

Love you

@1982kinger 2 ай бұрын

I stayed at the hotel once

@stephenspencer4672 2 ай бұрын

So turn the property into an apartment complex , and give some deserving families a home at a price they can afford.

@XCambodianBuddha 2 ай бұрын

Are you serious? It would become a large ghetto

@brucebeamon5460 2 ай бұрын

JUST NO …. HIGH RISE PUBLIC housing is a thing of the PAST that has NEVER WORKED ANYWHERE MOST if not all have been demolished … Why would a SUCCESSFUL HOTEL want to be surrounded by affordable housing…. Also installing plumbing for bathrooms and kitchens in all units would be cost prohibitive especially for what low income citizens could pay .

@noodengr3three825 2 ай бұрын

No mention of the decades of one party control of Detroit politics. Teeming with corruption like a superintendent of public schools who could not read and overall bad policies the city's demise was inevitable. Detroit is the only US city to exceed 1million and then fall below that number

@erob1962 2 ай бұрын

Here we go!!!

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@@noodengr3three825 and it's all past now!

@GregoryBirulkin 2 ай бұрын

Why don't they convert it to affordable housing???

@FrankaiVideos-DetroitsComeback Ай бұрын

@GregoryBirulkin oh,maybe for several billion and years of renovation work...

@prestonstephens7719 2 ай бұрын

Would the last person to leave PLEASE turn the light’s off….

@brucebeamon5460 2 ай бұрын

A saying about Detroit from DECADES ago 😒 WE ARE STILL HERE ! MANY of US BY CHOICE !

@burtlewand5915 2 ай бұрын

Yeah, this is super dated. My family members in their 60's and 70's can't believe how much nicer the city has gotten in recent times.

@kuwinsitall 2 ай бұрын

Make it residential

@brucebeamon5460 2 ай бұрын

That would be extremely EXPENSIVE…. Putting in additional plumbing for each unit alone would be cost prohibitive as for a return on investment… but ideally I do wish the two towers facing Jefferson could stay … get rid of the ones off the river leaving the winter garden as it is called and perhaps add some lower rise condos and possibly some green space facing the river .. I think I saw that blue cross owns the 2 shorter towers and they would stay put

@johnkeviljr9625 2 ай бұрын

I spent a lot of time working in Detroit in the 80's and 90's. I've always liked Detroit. But, the Ren Cen's design and location were flawed from the start. It is functionally obsolete. The interior is a frustrating rabbit warren. Detroit never had the demand for the new center as the narrator mentioned. It is a sad omen to a well-intentioned, but desperate endeavor in the 70's.

@TonyEvans-v5d 2 ай бұрын

I saw that thing being built as a rebirth for Detroit. And still 600,000+ people moved away from here. It's a great place to play Hide N' Seek. I never liked it. The guy would built it designed it after the same Cylinder looking glass tower in Atlanta, GA. Not very original 🤔!!!??? So it's NOT an ICON! It's a copy cat. I doubt if it gets torn down: Detroit can't afford it! Should have put an Observation Deck on top of it for much needed revenue... like NY or Chicago! But, nice view of it from across the Detroit River in Windsor, Canada....

@brucebeamon5460 2 ай бұрын

News flash ~ BOTH buildings were designed by the SAME ARCHITECT ( John Portman). If I’m correct I believe this one was 1st also another on the Bonaventure, Hotel is out in Los Angeles… This is also the largest of the 3

@MoneyC225 2 ай бұрын

@@brucebeamon5460 Its twin in Atlanta is a calendar year older, but slightly shorter.

@jelirestri 2 ай бұрын

The rise ... ?

@harrymaciolek9629 2 ай бұрын

It seems a waste to tear it down, but I won’t miss it. It never fit well with the rest of downtown. Returning the site to public use could be a very good thing.

@dmax5678 Ай бұрын

Destroying iconic buildings that define city skylines is never a good thing.