Bedrock Unveils First Look Inside the New Development on the Site of the Former Hudson’s Department Store

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May 12, 2022 [DETROIT] — As the Tower nears 200 feet on its path to 685, Bedrock today provides the public with a first look at the anticipated office space, destination retail, event spaces, public rooftop amenities, and activated public plaza of the development on the site of the former Hudson’s department store. The 1.5 million gross square foot (GSF) mixed-use development promises to serve as a landmark destination, establishing Detroit as the city to live, work and play.

“The significance of this development goes beyond its unique and distinctive physical presence. Once complete, along with impressive views, the project will bring premier office, residential, hotel, and event spaces with carefully curated dining and entertainment experiences,” said Kofi Bonner, CEO of Bedrock. “But more importantly, the project will anchor the transformation of the historic Woodward corridor and exemplifies the resurgence of Detroit. The reinvigoration of Detroit’s most centrally located site will become a must-see location and will generate fond memories for Detroiters and visitors for generations to come.”

ECONOMIC IMPACT

Over the past decade, Bedrock has helped to attract more than 200 businesses to Detroit, resulting in the creation of more than 21,000 jobs. The project will further drive economic development by creating an estimated 2,000 permanent and full-time jobs upon completion, bringing new business to the city and activating what was once a primarily vacant lot.

The landmark destination will have created 7,500 construction jobs upon completion and will generate substantial direct income tax and business activity revenue for the city.

COMMUNITY EXPERIENCE

The distinctive mixed-use project will incorporate public spaces throughout the development, providing a new place to relax, dine, entertain and shop.

The second and third floors of the office building have been designed to incorporate a 126,000 GSF world-class events and meeting venue featuring a wide range of modern, and highly desired amenities, that will host events ranging from 50 to 2,500 people.

It’s important to note, a venue of this size fills a niche in the Detroit event venue market and will position itself as the major event space on Woodard Avenue close to Campus Martius, placing event attendees within walking distance of the numerous local businesses in the Central Business District.

Those existing businesses will also be joined by new ground floor retail and experience spaces along Woodward and Grand River, enhancing the allure and excitement of the pedestrian experience along the historic Woodward Avenue shopping corridor.

The development will feature an activated through-cut plaza in the space between the office building and Tower of the development, in line with Bedrock’s commitment to activating public spaces such as Parker’s Alley and the Belt. The space will provide additional retail and exhibition frontage complemented by public art and year-round programming for all of Detroit to freely enjoy.

The project will also feature unique rooftop food and beverage amenities, providing one-of-a-kind views of the city skyline. This will be one of Detroit’s most unique experiences for visitors and residents.

New-York based SHoP Architects and Detroit-based Hamilton Anderson worked in tandem with Bedrock to ensure the project offered dynamic public spaces and an activated streetscape on all sides of the development.

OFFICE & ENTREPRENEURIAL INCUBATION

The development will offer more than 400,000 GSF of office space with large flexible floor plates and floor-to ceiling windows, providing an abundance of natural light and exceptional views of the city.

Pophouse, a Detroit-based commercial interior design studio, is designing the office space common areas to appeal to tech-forward companies.

“The future of industry is one of ingenuity and creativity,” said Anna Okerhjelm, Studio Director at Pophouse. “We set out to create a design narrative for the development on the site of the former Hudson’s department store that embraces the soul of opportunity in Detroit and complements the rich fabric of the city to inspire and propel growth. Our team is proud to play a role in bringing to life this shared vision of a world-class urban campus, which will function as an incubator for innovation and progress moving forward.”

The world-class office building will help to attract national tenants that complement the growing community of businesses in Detroit’s downtown innovation district, including DT Midstream, Coyote Logistics, IBM, Microsoft, Rocket Mortgage, LinkedIn, StockX, Universal McCann, UBS, Ally Bank’s national headquarters and Fifth Third Bank’s regional headquarters. Office leasing for the office building is underway.

WHAT’S NEXT

Construction on the development has been ongoing since Bedrock broke ground in 2017. 130- foot caissons were drilled to support the buildings’ foundation, and in total more than 10,200 tons of steel and 11,600 beams were used to create structural support.

Since March 2021, the building has been steadily increasing in height, with the office building “topping out” at 220 feet in April 2022. Structural work on the Tower continues and will reach its final height of 685 feet in 2023, becoming the second tallest building in Detroit and the State of Michigan.

The skyline silhouette of downtown Detroit will be forever reshaped by the transformational project, creating a legacy development that will be enjoyed by generations to come. The development is expected to be completed in 2024.

About Bedrock

Bedrock is a full-service real estate firm specializing in innovative city-building strategies, reaching far beyond the boundaries of bricks and mortar. Since its founding in 2011, Bedrock and its affiliates have invested and committed more than $5.6 billion to acquiring and developing more than 100 properties in Detroit and Cleveland, including landmark developments at the Hudson’s Site, the Book Tower restoration, City Modern and the May Company Building. Bedrock’s portfolio totals more than 22 million square feet of office, retail and residential space within new construction and adaptive reuse projects.

For more information on Bedrock’s projects, visit bedrockdetroit.com or engage with us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Click here to view a complete timeline of Bedrock and the Rock Family of Companies’ engagement within the Detroit community.

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