Dan Gilbert snags $8M in tax breaks for Free Press Building redevelopment

One of the larger downtown renovations currently underway got a boost from the state today. The Michigan Strategic Fund approved an $8 million brownfield incentive package for the project, which now has a $78.9 million price tag, according to Crain’s.

This approval has also led to an extension on the project; Gilbert now has until 2021 to finish the redevelopment.

Plans for the redevelopment include first floor retail space, second and third floor office space, and residential in floors four-14. The building has one fourteen-story tower flanked by two six-story sections.

Gilbert’s real estate group Bedrock purchased the building in late 2016. The building has been vacant since 2001; photographers Michelle and Chris Gerard visited a few years back to see how the interior was holding up.

It’s one of many large developments underway by Bedrock, which owns around 100 properties around downtown Detroit. Another one of its larger redevelopments—the David Stott Building in Capitol Park—will soon be opening with retail, residential, and office space.