A Barn

There's a barn on Michigan Avenue.  I've been meaning to get a picture of it because it's a pretty nice barn and it looks like the land is for sale.  You never know what's going to happen to a barn after the land is sold.  So I had to get a picture of it.

 The light was hitting it just about right because there was the sun to the west and gray skies to the east.  My only complaint is that I didn't have my smaller lens, so I couldn't get the shot I was looking for.

So I tried the longer way.  I think I like this a little better.

Lunch at Slow's

After the Westcott, we ended up grabbing lunch at Slow's.  It was pretty good.

Just a shot looking down Michigan Avenue.

A Snowy Drive Home

I'd like to say that winter has returned with a vengeance but it never really left.  A couple weeks ago, we got dumped on and just about when we were recovering from it, we get more snow.  There wasn't too much snow, but it was just enough to make things fun.

 One thing I don't get is why are there people who don't turn their lights on when it is getting dark?  Especially when it is snowing.  The lights are there to help other people just as much as they are for you.

 The roads weren't too bad but they were bad enough.

 At least Washtenaw County was doing its job.

 I don't like Michigan Avenue when it gets backed up though.

Really?

Dashing Through the Snow in Detroit

My route took me right through Detroit, so I got a few more pictures.

 I think there is another tower like this at the other end of Woodward.  It basically depicts the things that made Detroit great at one time.  Speaking of which, one of these days I'm going to have to seek out the Model T Factory in Highland Park.

 Looking down Woodward just before the Art Museum.  This is one of the advantages of having traffic lights.  I wasn't about to stand in the median to get this picture.

 A little further down Woodward getting closer to downtown.  I kind of like how the buildings in the background are obscured by the snow.

 A couple blocks away from the Fox Theater, Comerica Park, etc.  As you can see, the roads were pretty crappy.

 Getting closer to Campus Martius.  If you can see the lights on the buildings, evidently those were put up by Dan Gilbert.

 At Campus Martius.  Traffic was pretty much a snarl at this point.

 So I decided to park my car and wander around for a little bit.  I have been meaning to take pictures of this building for a while but it looks like I'm going to have to try again when the weather is nicer.  I would like to use my bigger lens to get closer pictures of some of the details.

 At anyrate, this beauty is the Book Tower on Washington Boulevard.  Construction was started in 1916 and was completed in 1926.  This building is an example of Neo-Classical and Neo-Renaissance architecture.  It stands 475 feet tall.  I believe it currently stands empty but there are plans to renovate it.

 Across the street from the Book Tower is St. Aloysius Church in Detroit.   It was established in 1873 and looks like a typical urban church.

 Looking up at the facade.

One of the doors of the Church. I've said it before, I'm not particularly religious, but I do like churches.

 Looking up at the David Stott building.

I'm not sure what street I'm looking down here but the orangish building to the left is the Guardian Tower.

The Michigan Central Train Station

I don't normally like to post pictures of the ruins of Detroit on this blog but this station was in the news recently, so I figured I would get some pictures of it.

 The Michigan Central Station became operational on December 26, 1913 after the old station burned down.  It was planned as part of a project that included the tunnel that goes from Detroit to Windsor.  The old station was located on a spur line and was inconvenient for the passengers.  The architectural style is known as Beaux Arts.

 At the time of its construction, it was the tallest train station in the world.  While it is outside of the downtown area, it was hoped that this would spur development in the area around it but that never quite happened (unlike the Fisher Building).

 At the peak of railroad travel in the early days of this station, about 200 trains per day would pass through it.  In the 1940's, more than 2,000 passengers would pass through per day and about 3,000 employees worked in the building itself.

 After World War II, passenger traffic started to decline with the advent of other means of travel.  It didn't really help that the station was kind of out of the way.  In 1956, there was an attempt to sell the station for a third of its building cost but that fell through.   In 1967, the main terminal was closed down because of the high maintenance costs versus the volume of passengers passing through.

 Things started to look up in 1971 as Amtrak took over passenger service.  The main terminal was reopened and a renovation project began in 1978 but further renovations were not performed and another deal to retask the building fell through.  In 1988, Amtrak discontinued use of the station but still used a platform for passenger service until the opening of its terminal on Woodward in 1994.

 In 1996, the building was bought by Manuel Maroun.  He's the guy that also owns the Ambassador Bridge.

In 2006, the Detroit City Council voted to have the building demolished but was sued under the National Perservation Act.  So the building remains standing.  If there is one building that stands as a symbol of what used to be Detroit, it is this one.  There have been a number of plans to renovate this building but none of them have come to fruition.  Much like the city, this building's future is undetermined.

Evening Shots of Detroit

I decided to take an odd way out of town by working my way over to Woodward Avenue.  I didn't want to get back on I-75 because traffic was pretty backed up.

 I'm glad I went this way because it gave me a chance to get some nice evening shots.  Looking down Woodward towards the River. 

 This is almost a repeat of my picture from Sunday, but there is more traffic.

 Entering Campus Martius.

Then I decided to get on Michigan Avenue in order to catch I-94.  It's kind of nice to see Detroit with some bustle.