“You know that episode of Friends where Ross + Emily check out their dream wedding venue only to find it in ruins? Yet decide that the history and symbolism of the space is so important they’re determined to run with it anyway? With the elegance of a romantic wedding amongst a historic, at times dilapidated property, this editorial reminds us just a little bit of that scene. Instead of London, it’s Detroit, and the venue in question is the Packard Automotive Plant. Once the world’s largest auto factory, the crew at Mitten Weddings & Events, along with photographer Samantha Leigh Studios embraced its forthcoming revival with an industrial, yet glamorous take on Detroit weddings.”
“The group Pure Detroit gives tours of the city’s gleaming landmarks. And its skeletons. That includes the former Packard factory — 43 abandoned buildings on Detroit’s east side, sprawling shells of concrete with graffiti and rubble. Think: Mad Max or a bombed-out city.”
“Detroit — Developers of the Packard Plant project celebrated the progress of cleaning up the four-story administration building Saturday at a private party with family and friends.”
Photo: Yvette van der Velde for Packard Plant Project
“On Detroit’s lower east side — a neighborhood that has thus far not enjoyed many fruits from the slow reinvigoration of the Motor City — sits 45 acres of what was once a sprawling producer of Packard Gray Wolfs, Super Eights, and, in wartime, engines for P-51 Mustang fighter planes. In 1956, the last Packard rolled off the assembly line and the space has been far from its former glory ever since.”
Six decades after shutting down, Detroit’s Packard Plant is being revived with tours of the former auto facility and new tenants. Plans for a brewery and a restaurant are also in the works. (Tanya Moutzalias/Ann Arbor News/Associated Press)
“Trip-planning multiple choice: a) Mountains b) Sand c) Surf
d) Factories.
If you picked the last vacation option, you’ve got company.
“We’re finding a hunger,” says Michael Boettcher, an urban planner and industrial-history buff. “Everyone has been to Disney World, and it’s like, what else you got?” Read more
“Detroit — It’s been nearly a year since the owner of the Packard Plant publicly kicked off the first phase of a $300 million-plus renovation plan of the sprawling 40-acre property.
In that time, $4 million has been spent on pre-development and clean-up, with more than 14,000 yards of debris hauled away from the lower east side plant that sat mostly vacant for decades, according to Kari Smith, director of development for the project through site owner Arte Express Detroit. There are plans for a brewery to open next year, and more than 1,000 people have taken tours to get a look at the site.” Read More
Plus TV out of Spain filmed a video and interviewed Fernando Palazuelo at the Packard Plant during the summer of 2017. The video is in Spanish and there are nice views of the plant. Click on image to watch the video.
Happy New Year from the Packard Plant Project! Due to avid interest, we want to share with you the work completed in 2017. Below are the before and after photos featuring each floor of the Administration building, 1651 E Grand Blvd. Exterior landscape cleanup and rooftop remediation. For the full slideshow of the Administration building go here.
Administration Building
Photo: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant Project
In August, in partnership with Pure Detroit, official tours began at the Packard Plant. They were extremely popular, held four times a week on Saturday and Sunday. Due to winter weather, the tours ceased in December but will start up again in the Spring. For more information visit Pure Detroit.
Photo: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant Project
In October, you may have seen a crane hovering above the Administration Building. That was the team from Comet Construction clearing structural steel and debris left on the roof from the collapse of the penthouse photo lab. This created a safer work environment for restoration efforts to continue on the Administration Building.
Photo: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant ProjectPhoto: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant Project
In 2017 we also focused our attention on 1651 E Grand Blvd, designed by architect Albert Kahn, future site of the Packard Plant Brewery. The Detroit based team from Qualified Abatement cleaned and remediated the interior and exterior space. Once the remediation was completed our landscape crew removed the overgrowth and debris. What an amazing difference and great work by both crews.
1651 E Grand Blvd
Photo: Yvette van der Velde | Packard Plant Project
We are excited about the new year and movement forward on the Packard Plant Project. We thank you for your continued support. We couldn’t do it without you.
