Weird downtown building next to the Guardian Building up for sale again

It’s somehow easy to miss this strange glass building right along Woodward in front of the Guardian Building. This “footstool” to the majestic Guardian Building has been for sale off and on throughout the years. It sits between One Woodward and the Chase Building. And yes, it was mentioned multiple times when we asked readers to choose the ugliest building in Detroit a couple years ago.

Google Street View

According to Crain’s, the building is up for sale again. It spans 30,000 square feet and the the HVAC for the Guardian Building sits on top of the building. Crain’s says that no price is listed for the building, but offers are due by May 25.

The building was purchased by Wayne County along with the Guardian Building and parking deck a few years ago. We featured it in a map of downtown buildings for sale in 2014 (side note: it’s a fun map to look at since most of the buildings have been or are in the process of being redeveloped).

Who should buy it? We have one good guess. Is there a way to creatively redevelop the building so it’s not so out of place?