As some look to demo the Lafayette others are trying to save it

The Lafayette Building, which shares a block with Lafayette Coney Island, may be headed for the wrecking ball. Detroit development officials say it's too expensive to rehab the building. However, a group of Detroiters is rallying to save the structure.

Excerpts:


From a Freep story about the demolition (read the entire story here):

George Jackson, president of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., a quasi-public arm of the city that performs staff work for the DDA, said several attempts to redevelop the Lafayette Building had failed.

"I don't think we have a choice," he said Thursday after a DDA meeting. "I've been here over seven years and we've talked to several developers. The project just doesn't financially and economically pencil out. We are very confident that this is, in this case, the best alternative."

From Andy Linn, a Detroiter, and owner of local business City Bird, which makes handmade crafts, including tote bags and buttons that reflect the city. After sending his letter, via e-mail, to the council, Linn was asked to speak at Thursday’s City Council meeting.

“As an urban planning graduate student at Wayne State University, I am acutely aware of the benefits of historic preservation. We all know that Detroit is struggling, but one major card we have over competing urban areas and regions, is a historic legacy found in buildings throughout this great city – buildings that can never be replaced.

Unfortunately, it seems that the Lafayette building is simply the latest prominent downtown building being threatened by the wrecking ball. However, this building had a key role in Detroit’s past, and I believe it can play a key role in this city’s future. …

Read the entire article here.


For further information:

Read a blog posting about the Lafayette by Andy Linn here. Join the "Save the Lafayette Building" cause on Facebook here. You can find a petition to save the Lafayette here. And a history of the Lafayette building from Detroit website BuidlingsofDetroit can be found here.