Some of Detroit’s most beautiful apartment buildings and hotels were built in the Cass Corridor. But as poverty and abandonment took over, the buildings began to decay.
That cycle is beginning to reverse in a big way as construction begins on a new Red Wings arena and entertainment district.
Here are 23 vacant apartment buildings in the Cass Corridor that will either be renovated or demolished soon. Click on the address for more information from Motor City Mapping.
1.
Address: 1oo Temple
Status: No plans have been announced, but its fate is in doubt.
Owner: Hass Systems LLC
Background: Built in the late 19th century, the upscale, six-story Alhambra Apartments originally attracted wealthy residents, including Harvey Firestone, founder of Firestone Tire Company. The Romanesque Revival building is one of the last structures on the two-block stretch of Temple between Cass and Woodward. Last year, the adjacent Temple Hotel and three century-old homes were demolished.
2. 
Address: 145 Temple
Status: Unknown
Owner: TSD Solutions
Background: The Alden Apartments closed in 2008, and a year later a fire damaged some of the interior, chasing out squatters. Bricks were placed in the windows to prevent trespassing in 2009, and the building has been vacant since.
3. 
Address: 70 W. Alexandrine
Status: Under renovation
Owner: Alexandrine LDHA LLC
Background: Opened in 1929, the eight-story Strathmore Hotel was converted into apartments in the 1960s until becoming vacant in 2004. A $28 million project is underway to redevelop the building into 129 apartments and a first floor for businesses. The project is expected to be completed in the summer of 2016.
4. 
Address: 3550 Cass
Status: Under renovation
Owner: Cass Plaza Apartments LTMD
Background: The six-story Cass Plaza was built in 1924 in the Italian Renaissance style and housed 78 units. Originally the Naomi Apartments, Cass Plaza is being converted into 39 apartments and a coffee shop and is expected to open later this year. The apartments will be for lower-income people.
5. 
Address: 457 Brainard
Status: Vacant, tentative rehab plans
Owner: The 457 Brainard Ownership Series
Background: The 99-year-old Traymore has been vacant for years, but the owners have kept the three-story building relatively secure. Curbed Detroit reported that the owners were seeking permission in February to begin extensive work. To date, there have been no signs of work at the building.
6. 
Address: 2933 Second
Status: For sale, owners delinquent on taxes
Owner: Employees Benefit Trust Fund of New York
Background: The three-story apartment building near the Masonic Temple was condemned in 2012 after city officials found holes in the walls, exposed wires, unsanitary community restrooms, a dog carcass and human and animal waste. The current owners are two years behind on their property taxes and are trying to sell the property.
7, 8. & 9. 
Address: 2942 Second & 2952 Second
Status: Unknown
Owner: Line Rock LLC
Background: Built in the early 20th century, the trio of apartments next to the Masonic Temple have been relatively well-secured since becoming vacant. From left, they are the Manhattan, the Altadena and the Cromwell. The owner, which is listed as a corporation from East Lansing, has not made any public plans.
10. 
Address: 4625 Second
Status: Under renovation
Owner: 4625 LLC
Background: The stately Forest Arms apartment building was severely damaged in a five-alarm fire in 2008, but an ambitious $10 million rehab is underway for 72 apartments and several penthouses. The 56,000-square-foot building was built in 1905.
11. 
Address: 81 Peterboro
Status: Soon to be renovated
Owner: 81 Peterboro Limited Partnership
Background: The 138-year-old James Scott mansion has been abandoned since the 1970s, and a body was found in an outside stairwell in 2008. Owner Joel Landy, who also redeveloped the nearby Addison Building and Burton Theatre, plans to spend about $7 million on converting the crumbling building into lofts, just three blocks from the Red Wings arena.
12. 
Address: 438 Selden
Status: Likely to be demolished
Owner: City of Detroit
Background: The three-story Marie Apartments is a neglected, hulking mess. Vacant since the 1980s, the building is buckling, and the roof has collapsed. A developer proposed demolishing the structure and building a new apartment building in early 2014, but those plans stalled. Its status is unknown.
13. 
Address: 624 W Alexandrine
Status: Under renovation
Owner: The Green Garage LLC
Background: Built in 1898, the El Moore offered spacious, high-end flats that were eventually diced into smaller rooms for lower-income people. The current owners plan to offer apartments and a hostel with rooftop cabins and green energy.
14. 
Address: 678 Selden
Status: Renovations planned
Owner: 678 Selden LLC
Background: The three-story Finn Apartments looks small from the road, but the building is very long, with 30 studios. The vacant structure needs extensive work after it was damaged by metal scavengers. It’s unclear when work is supposed to start.
15.
Address: 2930 Cass
Status: For sale
Owner: Skyline Partners LLC
Background: The three-story brick building is for sale for $399,900 and includes indoor parking. “Make it your home or convert it into condos!” the advertisement boasts. The building appears to be secure and structurally sound.
16 & 17.
Address: 110 Sporat (Eddystone) and 2463 Park Ave. (Hotel Park Avenue)
Status: Eddystone to be renovated; Hotel Park Avenue to be demolished, pending approval.
Owner: Eddystone (Euclid Enterprises) and Downtown Development Authority (Park Avenue)
Background: These historic buildings were designed by the famed architect Louis Kamper and operated as hotels in what is now the shadow of the new Red Wings arena. Preservationists are hoping to win a last-minute fight to prevent demolition of the Park Avenue.
18.
Address: 711 Alexandrine
Status: Under renovation
Owner: 711 Alexandrine LLC
Background: Renovations have begun at the four-story Rainer Court Apartments at Alexandrine and Third, where the owners are planning to rent out 36 market-rate apartment. Retail space also will open on the first floor.
19.
Address: 3962 Cass
Status: Vacant but well-secured
Owner: Kenneth Davies
Background: The owner, a lifelong Detroiter, has kept the four-story Century Apartments secure and clean. The classical revival-style building at Second and W. Alexandrine was built in 1923.
20. 
Address: 2900 Cass
Status: Vacant, open to trespass
Owner: Temple Commons LLC
Background: The vacant, blighted building next to the Temple Bar at Cass and Temple was once a drug store and food market with more than a dozen apartments. The LLC, which bought the vacant building about five years ago, has done little with it, leaving it open to trespass. The investor or investors have hidden their identity behind a corporation that also owns the vacant hotel and an abandoned lot across the street. No plans have been announced for any of the properties.
21. 
Address: 408 Temple
Status: Vacant, no plans announced
Owner: Temple Commons LLC
Background: Built during the hotel boom of the 1920s, the former Hotel Fort Wayne shares the block with the historic Masonic Temple. The building was renamed the America Hotel and has been vacant for years. The owner has cleaned up graffiti and secured the first floor. No plans have been announced.
22.
Address: 2467 Cass
Status: Vacant, no plans announced
Owner: Sorin Enterprises LLC
Background: The vacant, four-story Atlanta Apartments at Cass just north of I-75 has been vacant for years but the building is secure on the bottom floor and appears to be in relative good shape.
23. 
Address: 2447 Cass
Status: Vacant, no plans announced
Owner: Sorin Enterprises LLC
Background: The four-story Hotel Ansonio has been vacant for about a decade but the structure appears to be strong and relatively secure. No plans have been announced.
We’ll continue to monitor the progress of the buildings.
What’s next for 23 vacant Cass Corridor apartments, hotels added by Steve Neavling on
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Steve Neavling
Steve Neavling lives and works in Detroit as an investigative journalist. His stories have uncovered corruption, led to arrests and reforms and prompted FBI investigations.
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