42. Corktown booms with new condos, apartments as Ford campus takes shape

42. Corktown booms with new condos, apartments as Ford campus takes shape

42. Corktown booms with new condos, apartments as Ford campus takes shape
Detroit Yes 20:04 Thu May 18/23 36 lines

The growth of Corktown seems to be on steroids these days, and
much of it is happening right in the shadow of Ford's massive
investment in Michigan Central Station and some adjacent
properties. That includes a $6 million makeover of Roosevelt Park
into a public plaza in front of the former train station, which
had previously been largely unkempt green space.

And while the renovation of the train station stands as perhaps
the most visible rehab project underway in the neighborhood known
for its smaller single-family homes largely dating back more than
a century, more in-fill condo and apartment projects are dotting
Corktown's blocks. Also, more large-scale projects along Michigan
Avenue, such as the $93 million, seven-story housing and retail
development dubbed the Michigan and Church Street project are
nearing completion. Since Ford's announcement nearly five years
ago that it was buying the long-vacant train station for an
innovation campus, there has been approaching $500 million in
private investment in various projects in the Corktown area,
according to an estimate by city of Detroit officials.
Additionally, city and state investments in infrastructure in the
area total about $27.5 million.

That's all in addition to the roughly $950 million that Ford has
invested in its projects in the neighborhood. Real estate experts
in the area are quick to note that the development boom happening
in Corktown is occurring before the Dearborn automaker has even
begun to fully occupy the buildings in which it has invested.

"We still haven't seen the full of impact of Ford hit yet," said
James Tumey, a real estate agent with O'Connor Real Estate, a
residential and commercial brokerage firm with its offices on
Michigan Avenue in Corktown, and which has worked on several of
the condo projects in the area. "It's exciting to surf the wave
and build more projects. I don't know if Corktown will be ready
for it."

42/1. John Palmer 20:07 Thu May 18/23 8 lines

Still remember the old ethnic festival site at
Michigan and Third. I spent many a weekend there
selling various food products as well as setting
up and tearing down concession booths - my father
has a stand rental business and we also sold
food (and picture buttons and other things) at
those festivals. Those were my summers when I was
a teenager in the late 1970's.

KEYWORDS:
CORKTOWN

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