5 Michigan Central Station news briefs you might have missed

The wild news cycle around Ford’s acquisition of Michigan Central Station has calmed down. In the months and years ahead, we’ll start to see the impact of Ford’s footprint in Corktown and Detroit, and we’ll finally see the old train station in use again.

Many stories have been coming out about Michigan Central Station and Corktown. Here are a few worth noting.

Snøhetta designs Ford’s future built environment

Norweigian design firm Snøhetta has been chosen as design leader for both the Corktown campus and the transformation of Ford’s Dearborn campus. The design will encompass both new builds and historic preservation of the train station. Snøhetta has worked on projects including the Norwegian National Opera in Oslo, the National September 11 Memorial Museum Pavilion at the World Trade Center in New York City, Lascaux IV Caves Museum in Montignac, France, and the expansion to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

Stolen clock returned to the old train station

It really says something about Ford when an anonymous thief calls in order to return a clock that was stolen from Michigan Central Station a long time ago. The Detroit Free Press reports that the anonymous person called the Henry Ford Museum with a location and time for the clock to be picked up. Ford isn’t sure what will be done with the clock yet, but it could be used as a historical reminder or art piece in the station.

Big Sean/Movie theatre collab at MCS?

Earlier this year, Big Sean and Emagine Entertainment announced plans to build a multiplex in Detroit. Could it come to Michigan Central Station? Crain’s reports that they are considering MCS as a site for the 10-12 screen theater, if the timeline is right. They’d like to open by 2020. It’s unlikely the site would be ready at that time. We’d be fine with Emagine considering many, many other spots, including Midtown or along the East Riverfront.

Photo by Michelle & Chris Gerard

The community talks about what’s ahead

Shortly after Ford’s Corktown celebration and news conference last week, Councilwoman Raquel Castaneda Lopez and community members gathered a few blocks away to talk about the monumental occasion and what it could mean to the surrounding neighborhoods. Castaneda Lopez said, “It’s really about how do we protect and enhance the quality of life for the people who have been here and made Corktown the neighborhood that it is — and have made it so attractable and viable.” More meetings and discussions will happen in the upcoming months, including a Council Member Office Talks meeting on Monday, July 2 at the Mary Turner Center for Advocacy, 1927 Rosa Parks from 5-6:30 p.m.

Nuns sing at the station

Tens of thousands of people showed up for a rare Open House at Michigan Central Station this weekend, so much so that Ford added Monday times. A group of nuns stopped in and staged an impromptu concert for visitors, giving the hallowed architectural grounds a holy atmosphere.

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