The faded sign out front refers to this atrocious building as Retsel House. The slogan: "Midtown-From a Different Point of View." We assume that point of view is what residents would experience staring across the freeway at Midtown through undersized windows scattered randomly throughout the interior. What happened here?
The architect certainly drew inspiration from at least one of two things: A large birdhouse, or one of those red hotel pieces from Monopoly. The listing agent even provides photos of the blueprints with the listing, as if to say "Yes, someone actually had to design this, and they did so intentionally." The property has been vacant since at least 2009, when it appears the builders just gave up (we don't blame them). Despite its shortcomings, there's still hope for the poor Retsel: One of the planned light rail stops is just a couple blocks away, and we're betting that convenient mass transit negates poor aesthetics. The Retsel's five apartments can be yours for $125K.
UPDATE: We've discovered that the Retsel was originally meant to be condos, with asking prices starting at $198K for a one-bedroom. Wow! Check out page 37 in this old Midtown housing guide for details. Model D later calls them townhouses, and quotes $175K as the starting price point.
· 89 E. Edsel Ford [Trulia]
· Midtown Living [PDF]
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