Lafayette Building

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The Lafayette Building is an unused high-rise office building located at 144 West Lafayette Boulevard in downtown Detroit, Michigan. It was built in 1923 and occupies a triangular lot, bordered by Michigan Avenue, West Lafayette Boulevard, and Shelby Street. The building stands at 14 floors in height, with one basement floor, and 13 above-ground floors.

The office building was designed in the neo-classical architecture style, and is built with mainly brick, limestone, and terra cotta.

[edit] Description

Architect(s): Charles Howard Crane / Elmer George Kiehler
Architect (renovation): Kraemer Design Group
Redeveloper: Peebles Corporation

[edit] Facts

As of the summer of 2005, plans for the building include renovating it to accommodate 110 luxury condominiums units and commercial space.
The building, V-shaped and standing on the corner of Lafayette and Michigan, is currently not in use. It is either awaiting renovation or demolition.
The Peebles Atlanic Development Corporation announced on December 15th, 2005 that they plan to convert the Lafayette into one of Detroit's premier condominium buildings at a cost of over $40,000,000.
The residential conversion will include refurbishing the historical exterior, and the interior which will include 125 modern units with uspcale amenities such as a fitness center and ground floor commercial space.
The renovation of this building is slated to start in the summer of 2006, with a completion sometime in the summer of 2007.
After years of mismanagement, and a declining tenant base, the building was finally shuttered in 1997.
The building contains 178 feet of frontage along Michigan Avenue, 168 feet of frontage along Shelby Street, 135 feet of frontage along Lafayette Boulevard, and is 85 feet in length along its east facade which stands mid-block.