Hello from Detroit: A Walking Tour of Brush
Park and Dinner at the Ren Cen
After having learned so much about architecture during my
morning walking tour of downtown Detroit, we embarked on another
urban discovery: a walking tour through Brush Park, one of Detroit’s
historic residential areas with a location very close to downtown.
Bob Goldsmith, our local expert from Detroit
Tour Connections, met us at 97 Winder Street, location of a
recently restored bed and breakfast, and started explaining the
history of the area to us.
The Inn on Winder Street, an example of a successful restoration
in Brush Park
In its Victorian heydays, Brush Park was an affluent neighbourhoood
with numerous mansions for upper-class families. The area’s
beginnings date back to the 1850s when local entrepreneur Edmund
Brush started subdividing his family’s property. Construction
activity peaked in the 1870s and 1880s, and in 1906 one of the last
mansions to be built was renowned Detroit architect Albert Kahn’s
personal residence.
One of the stunning historical blocks in Brush Park
The neighbourhood stretches for 24 city blocks and originally included
about 300 homes of which 70 were Victorian mansions. As transportation
and the use of the automobile expanded in the early 20th century,
people started moving further afield, and the Brush Park area started
on a long road of decline. Many of the houses were subdivided into
smaller apartments during the Great Depression, and during the post-war
years numerous houses were abandoned altogether and fell into disrepair.
This Victorian beauty is shuttered
Many of the abandoned mansions started to attract criminal activity
and in many cases the city moved to demolish the homes, leaving
large empty lots of land behind. This phenomenon is commonly referred
to as “urban prairie”. At the turn of the new millennium,
less than half of the original structures were still standing in
Brush Park.
Another vacant property
Bob, a true Detroit connoisseur, came equipped with a series of
articles about the various historic structures, many of which outlined
the new owners’ story and the cost and extent of the renovation
effort. Brush Park was truly an interesting experience, with its
mix of beautifully restored mansions that might sit right next to
a burned out ruin which in turn might be located adjacent to an
empty plot of land where one of the former buildings had been taken
down.
New developments and restorations abound in Brush Park
The highlight of our tour was when a local resident invited us to
come inside her apartment: Lisa Rush, a friend of Bob’s, recently
bought a renovated studio apartment in one of the historic apartment
buildings in Brush Park. As we were walking through the neighbourhood,
Bob called her and she invited us in to show us the apartment. She
even offered us to use her washroom if we needed to.
Bob Goldsmith and Lisa Rush, our local Detroit connection
Lisa’s apartment is a sleek studio with a living room area
and features a kitchen with an island and a bedroom area that are
all aligned in a long rectangular space. Off to the side was the
bathroom. Lisa is a member of Preservation Wayne, a non-profit organization
dedicated to preserving, promoting and protecting Detroit’s
defining neighbourhoods and structures. Lisa was just celebrating
with a few friends, and I was amazed that she would invite three
complete out-of-town strangers into her beautiful apartment. This
local connection was definitely unexpected and totally exceeded
my standard expectations of hospitality.
Old buildings are being refurbished
Walking further north on John R Street we turned left and walked
by a mansion that is owned by a University of Windsor professor
who restored a beautiful Victorian era home that dates back to 1870.
Similar to Lisa, this professor has also invited Bob’s tour
participants into his personal home to show them his art collection.
A welcoming attitude like this where locals open their private homes
to complete strangers would probably be unheard of in many other
places.
This church is in great shape
We also saw two churches, right next to one another, one boarded
up and out of use for several years now while the neighouring church
was a fully intact impressive Richardson Romanesque sandstone building.
A few steps further up the street is the Bonstelle Theater, which
was originally designed by Detroit architect Albert Kahn as Temple
Beth El in 1903. Historic buildings abound in this area of Detroit.
Architectural details
On our way south on Woodward we stopped at the upscale Zaccaro’s
Market at 3100 Woodward Avenue which offers a variety of delicatessen
and fresh, organic foods. Detroit has a marked absence of large
supermarkets, so stores like Zaccaro’s fill in an important
need for local residents.
Cakes and pastries entice at Zaccaro's
Our tour was slowly coming to an end and Bob took us back to Winder
Street. This walking tour had certainly started to introduce us
to some of the historic and socio-economic issues of Detroit as
well as some of the recent rejuvenation efforts that have happened
over the last 10 years.
Some of Detroit's historical skyscrapers
After a coffee inside the stunning Guardian Building and a brief
rest at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel my travel partner Linda and
I were ready to head out again and decided to explore another Detroit
landmark: the Detroit People Mover. This 3 mile (4.5 km) long transportation
system hauls people through downtown Detroit on a single-track one-way
loop. It only moves in one direction (at present in a clockwise
direction) and encompasses 13 stations throughout the central business
district.
Linda and me in the stunning Guardian Building
We entered the People Mover at the Renaissance Center, and the two
rail cars were absolutely packed due to a Detroit Red Wings game.
Detroit is a big sports town, with six professional sports teams,
the most well-known of which include the Detroit Tigers (baseball),
the Detroit Lions (football) and the Detroit Red Wings (hockey).
Fans dressed in red hockey jerseys were entering the vehicle, and
things were getting crowded. For tourists, the heavily subsidized
People Mover transportation system is a great way to get around
the downtown area and even do some sightseeing from the elevated
vantage point. At a cost of only $0.50 per ride it is an absolutely
affordable and fun way to see different parts of the city.
The Renaissance Centre, GM's international headquarters
The entire People Mover loop took us about 20 minutes and brought
us right back to where we started. We went inside the Renaissance
Centre, the world headquarters of General Motors since 1996. The
seven building complex includes the 73-storey Marriot Hotel which
is the highest hotel in the Western hemisphere. The top of the Marriott
is crowned by the Coach Insignia restaurant, which is also the largest
rooftop restaurant.
The huge General Motors showroom at the Renaissance Centre
We admired the large GM showroom on the main floor as well as the
five-storey Wintergarden, an airy glass enclosed space which provides
access to the Riverfront and a great view of Windsor across the
river. Now hungry from all our explorations we headed straight to
the rooftop to see if we could have dinner at Coach Insignia.
View towards the Ambassador Bridge from the Coach Insignia restaurant
Although the restaurant was packed and we did not have a reservation,
we were able to get a seat by the bar and were fascinated by the
gorgeous view over the Detroit River, Windsor and the Detroit business
district. Belle Isle was visible in the north and the Ambassador
Bridge dominated the view in the south. We enjoyed a tasty series
of vegetarian appetizers of which the asparagus with sauce hollandaise
and the Caesar salad truly stood out.
At night the Ambassador Bridge is all lit up
We spent a fabulous evening at the top of Detroit and enjoyed the
slowly sinking sun and the golden glow it cast over the city. Tired
and satisfied after a long day of explorations we headed back for
a good night’s sleep to the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel. We
definitely needed to rest up since tomorrow our discoveries would
take us to The
Henry Ford Museum and the recently renovated Detroit Institute
of Arts.
