One of Detroit’s historic hotels is due for a top-to-bottom conversion to rental apartments.
The Detroit Free Press reports that the Leland House will undergo a $120 million renovation by Detroit developer Michael Higgins. He aims to remake the hotel into 340 rental units. And because the project will rely on a mix of federal and state tax credits, 20% of the units will be set aside as affordable.
The 20-story Leland Hotel first opened in 1927 on the corner of Bagley and Cass Avenues. Its offer of 800 air-conditioned rooms made it a state-of-the-art novelty at that time, notes the website Historic Detroit.
The hotel has had a colorful history.
Its bar was reportedly a hangout for Detroit’s notorious Purple Gang … and Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa hung out there, too.
It used to house a nightclub for banjo music that featured waiters with handlebar mustaches … and it currently houses the goth-industrial City Club, which first opened in 1983.
Higgins says he’s aiming to start construction in September.
This show originally appeared on the Daily Detroit News Byte podcast.