Chris Zadorozny contributed to this post.
UPDATE: A previous version of this article mis-quoted the rental rate per square foot for the Broderick. We regret the error and have corrected the text to reflect that the average square foot price is $1.60 at the Broderick, the same quote we received from The Whitney.
It's been about 8 months since the developers of the David Whitney building announced the partnership with the Aloft hotel brand to renovate the building into apartments and boutique hotel rooms. Where is the construction crew already? Turns out that just as the neighboring Broderick Tower wraps up, the Whitney will begin renovations. We're talking September and there is no exact start date yet but we'll keep you posted.
The Roxbury Group is the project developer; these are the same people behind The Auburn in Midtown. They have told Curbed that they are currently almost done gathering all the finances together and construction will begin immediately after.
With the Broderick close to completely pre-leased, James Van Dyke, Vice President of the Roxbury Group, expects all 108 apartments to be filled in the Whitney as well. They will begin pre-leasing the apartments around middle 2013, likely the summer. Turns out The Whitney plans to be much cheaper to rent than the Broderick! They estimate $1.60/ square foot as compared to a $2.60 at the Broderick. which is the same rate at The Broderick. Will would-be Brod'ers be eyeing the competition across the street?
The Grand Circus Park People Mover station is going to get an upgrade too. It’s located right outside the first two floors of the building and will be redeveloped into a self-contained station so that you can enter the building from the platform and skip the exterior metal stairs.
As for the retail part of the building, the Aloft hotel brand brings its own stores and restaurants on the Washington Blvd. side of the building. As for the Woodward Ave. side, Van Dyke says they are in the very early stages of talks with third-party restaurants, both local and national. The renovation is expected to be completed by December of 2013. We look forward to this gem of a building achieving it's pre-1959 status with the re-addition of decorative elements. And it certainly won't be a bad thing to lose that gargantuan iPad advertisement either.
· Broderick! Whitney! Capitol Park! Gilbert Staffers! A Real Estate News Quartet [Curbed Detroit]
· David Whitney Building Books a Partnership For Boutique Hotel [Curbed Detroit]
· Analyzing Aloft Hotel Decor, The New Whitney Building Brand [Curbed Detroit]
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