Forgive us for thinking of that “All the things!” meme, but Dan Gilbert’s folks are back at it buying more buildings. This time, a former sound studio in Capitol Park where they already own five buildings. This will make their sixth.
Compared to some of the other purchases Gilbert has made, this one is relatively small in size (and so is the building) which last listed for $750,000. The purchase price was undisclosed and the deal technically closed on September 18 to Gilbert’s subsidiary, 1250 Griswold L.L.C. for which the registered agent is Bedrock Real Estate Services L.L.C.
On the upside, some of the other Gilbert owned structures in the area have already seen significant improvements. The Detroit Institute of Music building is looking good at the corner of Grand River and Griswold. Word is that work on the Farwell building is about to get going in earnest.
Capitol Park throughout Detroit’s history, once the Michigan state capitol building left (which was later converted to a high school and has since burned down), has had a history of seeing better days even in the go-go times of Detroit’s past. Gilbert has cornered the market on buildings in the district, and it’ll be interesting to see what he does. We wonder what Stephens T. Mason, the first Governor of Michigan (also known as the “Boy Governor”) who is entombed there, thinks of all the changes.
No exact word yet on the use for the building, but the overall district plans we’ve seen include more retail and residential.