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Redevelopment plan for Detroit’s RenCen would demolish 2 towers, add housing

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Redevelopment plan for Detroit’s RenCen would demolish 2 towers, add housing


(CBS DETROIT) — General Motors and real estate firm Bedrock announced Monday a development plan for the Renaissance Center and 27 acres along the Detroit Riverfront. 

The proposal calls for preserving Detroit’s skyline, right-sizing the complex’s footprint and connecting the site to “the heart of downtown.”

“This iconic landmark’s future is important to Detroit and Michigan, and our shared vision with General Motors ensures that its redevelopment aligns with Detroit’s economic advancement,” said Kofi Bonner, CEO of Bedrock. “Additionally, our collaborative approach makes certain that the reimagined Renaissance Center and the riverfront further augment and support the city’s continued growth, benefiting the community and region at large.”

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GM and Bedrock propose: 

  • Creating a new pedestrian promenade connecting the heart of the city to the riverfront.
  • Removing the low-rise base of the complex and the two office towers nearest the river, creating an inviting destination and reducing obsolete office space.
  • Redeveloping three towers into a mix of hospitality and housing, preserving the essence of the skyline.
  • Turning reclaimed land into signature public spaces.
  • Reconfiguring the flow of the site to allow direct access to the buildings and the riverfront. 

In April, the two companies announced an agreement that called for plans to redevelop the RenCen and have GM move its headquarters into a new space in 2025 at the site of the former J.L. Hudson Department Store in downtown Detroit. 

“GM has the best possible partner with Bedrock in this effort to redevelop the Renaissance Center,” said Dave Massaron, Vice President of Infrastructure and Corporate Citizenship for General Motors, in a release. “Nobody has repurposed more buildings in Detroit than Dan Gilbert and his Bedrock team. This is another chapter in their unprecedented commitment to building the best possible future for the city and Michigan.”

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While Bedrock and GM have committed to funding a majority of the redevelopment project, the remainder is contingent on public funding. The two sides will meet with state and local leaders in the coming weeks and determine if it’s possible to move forward with the plan. 

“We’ve said since the very beginning of this process that we were going to make a realistic decision about preserving as much of the Renaissance Center as possible,” said Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan in a statement. “Dan Gilbert’s vision gives us a path forward to preserve and reuse three of the towers and, at the same time, creates a beautiful expansion of public space on the Detroit riverfront. We will need a public-private partnership to get this done and avoid the decades of inaction that accompanied so many other Detroit landmarks, like Hudson’s, Michigan Central Station, AMC Headquarters, and the Packard Plant. I am grateful for Dan Gilbert’s leadership in trying to prevent that fate for the Renaissance Center.” 

The concept of the RenCen was first conceived by Henry Ford II in the 1970s and was opened in 1976. GM purchased the complex in 1996 and, following renovations, moved its world headquarters there. 

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Detroit, MI

2 men dead in unrelated overnight Detroit shootings

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2 men dead in unrelated overnight Detroit shootings


DETROIT (WXYZ) — Two men are dead after being shot in the early morning hours of Sunday, in what police say were separate incidents.

Both shootings took place in between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. We’re told that one shooting happened in the 19000 block of Kelly Road on Detroit’s east side, and the other happened in the 8700 block of Quincy Street on Detroit’s west side.

Authorities say that the circumstances that led up to each of these shootings are unknown. No suspects have been arrested in relation to these cases.





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Detroit, MI

Hundreds gather for rally against gun violence on Detroit’s east side

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Hundreds gather for rally against gun violence on Detroit’s east side


Community violence intervention groups, local organizations and law enforcement partners joined forces on Saturday to send a message that it’s time to put an end to gun violence in Detroit.

Hundreds attended the annual Silence the Violence rally on the city’s east side. One of the event’s participants, Latina Mack, is a member of the community violence intervention group Force Detroit.

“I combine myself with Force Detroit to be able to help these kids, to give them the resources, to provide opportunities for them, to do things that they have never done before,” Mack said.

In 2023, her 17-year-old son, Elijah, was killed in an accidental shooting.

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“My son’s death prompted me to want to do more. I just didn’t want anybody else to go through what I go through on a regular basis. Sometimes that’s the biggest thing, just showing up and letting people know I’m here.” Mack said.

Organizers say the rally and march are about honoring those lost to gun violence, bringing awareness to ongoing struggles and showing support to those who need it.

“It’s very, very important to the survivors, and it’s more than just the survivors as it relates to the families, but the whole community is surviving this stuff because they seen it,” Dujuan Zoe Kennedy, executive director, Force Detroit, said.

Kennedy added that when it comes to gun violence, if you can predict it, you can prevent it.

“We know the root causes of violence are poverty. We know the root causes of violence are psychological, emotional and mental wellness. So we have to provide those things, we have to be there, we have to be trauma-informed and we have to operate and provide economic mobility,” Kennedy said.

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One example of a community violence intervention success is Jordan Owens.

“I got a lot of good mentorship, and a lot of good guidance from them and I feel like I’m going down a better path,” Owens said.

The 16-year-old was arrested with a gun just a few years ago.

“I wasn’t necessarily beefing with people doing that, but people were in my neighborhood getting robbed, killed, hurt and I felt like I just needed protection at my age. I felt like I didn’t have nobody to protect me and I felt like I had to do it myself,” Owens said.

Now he realizes that’s not the case.

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“It’s more to life than just all of this stuff in the neighborhoods and all of that. We all have the opportunity to change our lives and do better, and you just have to want that change for yourself.”

Owens has become an entrepreneur, starting both landscaping and car detailing services.

“I’d love to be a good community member, speaking to the youth and stuff like that, and doing more stuff like this. And I just want to go to college, continue with my businesses,” Owens said.



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Detroit Tigers tally only 2 hits in 4-0 loss to Seattle Mariners

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Detroit Tigers tally only 2 hits in 4-0 loss to Seattle Mariners


The Detroit Tigers notched only two hits in a 4-0 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Saturday afternoon.

Seattle pitcher Bryce Miller allowed one hit in six scoreless innings in the game.

Dominic Canzone drove in two runs with a pair of long extra-base hits for the Mariners, who had lost two straight after an eight-game winning streak.

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Detroit was 4-0 in June after going 6-22 in May.

Miller (2-0) allowed a lead-off triple to Colt Keith in the third and walked two batters while striking out nine. He has allowed 16 hits in 27 innings this season, striking out 29.

Tigers starter Keider Montero (2-4) gave up four runs on six hits in five innings.

The Mariners took a 1-0 lead in the second when Canzone doubled off the 412-foot sign in center, scoring Randy Arozarena from first.

Arozarena then hit a two-run double in the third to put Seattle up 3-0.

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The Tigers missed their best opportunity in the third when Keith led off the inning with his triple to center. Miller, though, retired the next three hitters on a pop-up and two strikeouts.

Canzone then led off the fourth with a 451-foot homer over the second level of shrubbery above the centerfield fence.

Up next

The teams finish their weekend series on Sunday afternoon with Detroit RHP Jack Flaherty (1-7, 5.31) facing RHP Luis Castillo (2-5, 5.53).



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