Renaissance Center
The Renaissance Center (100-400 Renaissance Center, East Jefferson Avenue, Detroit, Michigan 48243), nicknamed the Ren-Cen, is a group of seven interconnected skyscrapers in downtown Detroit, Michigan. Located on the Detroit River, the first phase of construction was announced in 1971 by Detroit Renaissance and followed in the wake of the 1967 Detroit riots. The new construction was intended to stem the tide of urban decay and white flight that followed the unrest. The Renaissance Center was at the time the world's largest privately financed project with an anticipated $500 million cost in 1971. John Portman was the principal Achitect. The design was revolutionary for city architecture, the central hotel tower in Portman's design for the Detroit Renaissance Center was to become the tallest hotel skyscraper in the world when it first opened in 1977.
The first phase constructed a five-building rosette, with a seventy-three-story hotel surrounded by four thirty-nine-story office buildings. This first phase officially opened in March, 1977. Two additional office towers opened in 1981. In May, 1996, General Motors bought the Renaissance Center for $73 million and converted it into its world headquarters through a $500 million renovation which was completed in 2005. The renovation included the opening of the Winter Garden, providing access to the Detroit International Riverfont[1]. This opening to the waterfront had corrected what many felt was a design flaw in the original. The Renaissance Center totals 5.5 million square feet, making it one of the world's largest office complexes. Cost estimates to build the Renaissance Center today could exceed $5 billion. The Renaissance Center is the tallest hotel in the United States with the largest roof top restaurant; it is one meter taller than Portman's Peachtree Plaza hotel in Atlanta. In 2006, a cruise ship dock was added to Hart Plaza, adjacent to the Renaissance Center.
History
The conception of the Renaissance Center originates in large part from the rioting that plagued Detroit in 1967. Detroit Renaissance, a private, non-profit development organization, formed in 1970 in order to stimulate building activity in Detroit that had been severely impacted. In addition to the Renaissance Center, the organization contributed to a variety of construction and renovation projects within the downtown area. Ford Motor Company chair Henry Ford II was the head of Detroit Renaissance and sold the concept of the Ren-Cen to the City and community leaders. Detroit mayor Roman Gribbs touted the project as "a complete rebuilding from bridge to bridge," referring to the area between the Ambassador Bridge that connected Detroit to Windsor, Canada and MacArthur Bridge, connecting the mainland with the city's island park, Belle Isle.[2]
The first tower opened on July 1, 1976. Built in an effort to revitalize the economy of Detroit after a long period of decline, the project was funded largely by the Ford Motor Company as part of the larger Detroit Renaissance group, a collection of business people who initiated many revitalization efforts throughout the city in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Ren-Cen was designed by noted architect John Portman, the architect for the Peachtree Center in Atlanta, Georgia and the Embarcadero Center in San Francisco, California.
On Friday April 15, 1977, Henry Ford II and Detroit Mayor Coleman Young unveiled a plaque commemorating the private investors whose funds made the project possible and, later that evening, 650 business and society leaders attended a benefit celebrating the Renaissance Center's formal dedication. The money raised from the $300-per-couple tickets went to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
When it opened, the conical central tower was originally the flagship of the Westin Hotels, changing hands over the years to its current owner, the Marriott Hotel chain. The top three floors of the hotel hosted a high end restaurant that rotated to allow a 360 degree view and was called The Summit. The rooftop restaurant received a $10 million makeover; however, the floor no longer rotates. The Coach Insignia restaurant currently occupies the top of the hotel. It serves Coach wines, a product of the Fisher family whose legacy includes Fisher Body, a name which is part of GM history.
Phase III, the residential development, was never completed. In 1982, the city measured the population of the central business district as 37 percent lower than in 1970. By 1983, the RenCen was in default in its mortgage payments for the second time, and the four insurance agencies that bankrolled the construction, along with Ford Motor Credit, assumed 53 percent ownership. Ford Land retained about 30 percent and the original limited partners 17 percent. In 1984, the Chicago-based Rubloff Company assumed management after buying out Ford Land's interest. Over the succeeding years, there would be a number of owners.
In 1987 the elevated-rail mass transit Detroit People Mover, after many years of construction, began operation with a stop at the Renaissance Center. The forbidding concrete berms located in front of the building carried most of the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning equipment for the complex.
When it was first completed Ford Motor Company occupied many offices in the building. In 1996, General Motors purchased the complex and moved its world headquarters to the Renaissance Center from their famous Cadillac Place in the New Center[3] area, located northwest of the downtown. GM initially paid $73 million to owner Highgate Hotels in Texas. In 2005, GM completed a $500 million renovation of the Renaissance Center. This included a $100 million makeover for the hotel Among GM's first actions was to remove the berms facing Jefferson Avenue. The renovation includes a lighted glass walkway called the "green ring" for its green lights; it cirles the mezzinine to make the complex easy to navigate, while a new Wintergarden provides a view of the riverfront and Canada. An added covered Skyway over Jefferson Avenue connects to the Millender Center.
The current complex consists of seven separate buildings: the central 73-story tower surrounded by four 39-story towers, a glass enclosed Wintergarden providing spectular views of the Detroit International Riverfront, and two 21-story towers on the east side.
Location
The Renaissance Center, located several blocks east of Woodward Avenue and the city's central financial district, is set apart from the rest of Detroit's skyscrapers and has gained a reputation for being a "city within a city" due to the tight cluster of buildings and vast amount of office space within them. There is a pedestrian walkway over Jefferson Avenue connecting the complex to the Millender Center, which has another walkway to the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center. Hart Plaza, Cobo Hall (home to the North American International Auto Show) and Joe Louis Arena are several blocks to the west, and Comerica Park and Ford Field are several streets northward. The American side of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel emerges directly besides the Renaissance Center. Renaissance Center is a station on the Detroit People Mover. The buildings' modernist architecture and isolated setting form a significant portion of the city's skyline, as the complex is almost always included in photographs, artwork, and souvenir items. The center can be seen from the Canadian city of Windsor, Ontario.
Statistics
In 1977, phase I of the Renaissance Center cost $337 million to construct; the centerpiece is the 1,298-room, 73-story 727 foot (221 m) central tower. It is the tallest building in the state of Michigan and, for a while, was the tallest hotel in the world, and still the tallest all-hotel structure in the United States. The building is famous for its cylindrical design. The smaller cylinders on sides of all the towers house the elevators. The huge atrium now houses a "GM World", a show case for GM vehicles. The surrounding towers, named Tower 100, 200, 300, and 400, are 39 stories and 522 feet (159 m) tall. Two additional towers, named Towers 500 and 600, are 21 stories and 339 feet (103 m) tall and were completed in 1981. GM gained control of Tower 500 and 600 in 2001. The entire complex has 5.5 million square feet of office space and 150,000 square feet of retail space. Of the 8,000 people that work in the complex 6,000 are GM employees.
| Building | Stories | Height | Square footage | Principle tenant | Opened | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marriott Hotel | 73 | 727 foot (221 m) | Marriot | 1977 | ||
| Southeast Tower | 39 | 522 feet (159 m) | 554,000 | General Motors | 1977 | |
| Southwest Tower | 39 | 522 feet (159 m) | 554,000 | General Motors | 1977 | |
| Northeast Tower | 39 | 522 feet (159 m) | 554,000 | General Motors | 1977 | |
| Northwest Tower | 39 | 522 feet (159 m) | 554,000 | General Motors | 1977 | |
| Atrium | 5 | Various retailers, GM Wintergarden | 1977-2001 | |||
| Tower 500 | 21 | 339 feet (103 m) | General Motors | 1981 | ||
| Tower 600 | 21 | 339 feet (103 m) | General Motors | 1981 |
Redevelopment
Although the Renaissance Center has helped to improve Detroit's economy, it has failed to revitalize pedestrian life downtown. Until recently, massive berms surrounded the complex, preventing public access from Jefferson Avenue, as GM completed major renovations. The complex has mainly housed offices, with few public attractions beyond small retail stores and a movie theatre. However, extensive renovations were completed in early 2005, transforming the building from a symbol of unrealized potential to a leader in shaping Detroit's downtown revival. A modern glass front door has been installed, opening up the building to visitors and to the city of Detroit. Other additions include a brilliant new Wintergarden that provides views of the Detroit River, a suspended glass circulation ring that helps improve pedestrian flow inside the building's maze-like interior, a GM sponsored showroom of historical vehicles, a completely gutted and restored hotel, and the addition of GM's corporate logo to crown the top of the building. In 2004, the Renaissance Center was featured in the Kevin Costner and Joan Allen film, The Upside of Anger. Costner's character plays a DJ for WRIF 101 FM, a real Detroit FM rock station, whose studio, in the film, is housed in the Renaissance Center. Among others, the Renaissance Center is featured in the film Grosse Pointe Blank, starring John Cusack and Minnie Driver. For Super Bowl XL held in Detroit on February 5, 2006, a large National Football League logo was wrapped around the main tower just beneath the GM logo.
The Riverfront Promenade was dedicated on December 17, 2004 and helped to usher in a return to recreational uses of Detroit's riverfront, an area of the city that had long been neglected. With the addition of several prominent restaurants and retailers to the complex, notably Jos A Bank, Brooks Brothers, Seldom Blues, and a first-run movie theatre, the Ren-Cen has started to redefine Detroit once again for a new generation.
Tours
The Renaissance Center offers tours four times a day Monday through Saturday. The tour is free of charge and starts at 10am, 12pm, 2pm, and 4pm. The tour covers the GM Wintergarden, GM World, an elevator ride up to the 72nd floor, a tour of the movie theater, and much more.
External links
- Renaissance Shops
- Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center
- Detroit Renaissance, the group that financed the construction.
- The Renaissance Center at Emporis.com