Manoogian Mansion
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The Manoogian Mansion is the official residence of the mayor of Detroit, Michigan. It is located at 9298 Dwight Street in the Berry Subdivision Historic District, on the city's east side, backing up to the Detroit River. It was built in 1928 for $300,000, but the owner lost the home during the Depression. Masco Company founder Alex Manoogian purchased the home in 1939. In 1966, the Manoogians donated the mansion to the City of Detroit. It was the Armenian immigrant's way of thanking his adopted hometown. (The Michigan Governor's Mansion in Lansing was also privately donated).
The Manoogian Mansion has Spanish Colonial Revival Style architecture with a Spanish Mission Revival Style influence including a terra-cotta tile roof. It has approximately 4,000 square feet. The physical layout of the house is dominated by walls of windows - bowed windows, arched windows, leaded windows - that let light stream in and open onto a spectacular view of the grounds and the Detroit River. The downstairs contains three sunrooms facing south and the river. There are 15 rooms in all, including a large living room, library, kitchen and two dining rooms - a formal room and a more casual one that looks toward the river. It has four bedrooms, plus two small bedrooms for servants. There are three full baths, a servants' bath and two half-baths.[1] The Berry Historic Subdivision Historic District has the former homes of several prominent Detroiters including John and Frederic Ford, Arthur Clamage, and John Kay of Wright-Kay Jewelers. Famous architects for the subdivision included John M. Donaldson and Henry J. Meier, A.C Varney, Roland Geis and Robert O. Derrick.[2]
[edit] Controversy
- See also: Kwame_Kilpatrick#Controversies
Since Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's first term in office, the Manoogian Mansion has been the focal point of controversy in Detroit politics. In 2002, the mayor allegedly had a party in the mansion that included exotic dancers. Soon after, one of the dancers who went by the stage name of 'Strawberry' was murdered. Since the text message scandal with the mayor and his former assistant and lover, Christine Beatty, some Detroiters have tried to picket outside the city-owned home. It is said that the police wanted the protesters to stand across the street and may even have suspended parking on the street to cut down on the protesters. Although this home is City property, the address is usually kept secret and the mansion has been removed from some street maps.
[edit] Notes
- ^ "The Detroit Almanac", The Detroit Free Press, November 2002.
- ^ Berry Subdivision. Cityscape Detroit.
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