Demolition a potential option for massive Detroit office complex

Constructed in phases in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Renaissance Center office complex on Detroit’s riverfront rises more than 720 feet at its highest point and includes more than 5.5 million square feet of space under roof.

The massive complex has hosted General Motors (GM) as its largest tenant throughout its existence, but the automaker announced in April it is moving to a different building in downtown Detroit, by some accounts elevating an already high vacancy rate at the campus.

This month, the Detroit Free Press reports that at least one redevelopment proposal being considered would see as many as five or six of the seven buildings demolished. Structures left standing would remain as a nod to preserve Detroit’s skyline, according to Zac Palmer of Autoblog.com.

GM owns five of the seven buildings, and the company is discussing the site’s future with architects and developers, according to Palmer's report. Both Autoblog and CBS News says one potential deal is with a limited liability company owned by Dan Gilbert, owner of Rocket Mortgage (formerly Quicken Loans) and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In mid-April, GM announced the Hudson’s Detroit campus as its future home, which is on the site of a former department store on a parcel of land now owned by Bedrock, a development firm owned by Gilbert.

“GM, Bedrock, the city of Detroit and Wayne County will establish a partnership to explore redevelopment opportunities for the Renaissance Center site,” GM stated in April.

The concept of demolition work at the sizable riverfront complex was not rejected by the office of Detroit Mayor John Duggan.

“The mayor has made it clear from the beginning that all options for the Renaissance Center site will be actively explored," John Roach of Duggan's office tells the Free Press. "We are not going to have a situation as we had with the Hudson’s building or Michigan Central where critical sites sat empty for 40 years because this community’s leaders would not make realistic decisions. All options are being explored and no decision has been made.”

Roach’s comment refers in part to the former department store on land that has now been redeveloped by Bedrock and will start serving as GM’s corporate home next year. The Michigan Central former train station was another building that sat vacant for years before serving in its current role as a host to startup firms.

Gilbert has been an active investor in downtown and near-downtown real estate in both Detroit and Cleveland.

An report from Walter Murphy of CBS Detroit quotes one source as saying a partial demolition is being considered in an early-stage Gilbert proposal. The same source, Kirk Pinho of Crain's Detroit Business adds, “There are also conversations about reusing it.”

Like most commercial structures, the demolition of any large buildings comprising the Renaissance Center complex likely would yield considerable amounts of recyclable steel and concrete. Much of the façade of the structures is made of plate glass.

The complex will not be empty when GM moves out, with other tenants including the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center hotel, more than a dozen restaurants, more than a dozen retail shops and numerous office tenants.