Districts
| Name | Image | Location | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bricktown Historic District | Separates the Renaissance Center from Greektown. | Bricktown separates the Renaissance Center from Greektown. Bricktown is home to St. Peter and Paul's Catholic Church, the oldest standing church in Detroit, and the Italian Renaissance style Wayne County Building (which was saved from demolition in the early 1980s). The Wayne County Courthouse, once located in the Wayne County Building, was the place where Mae West was once a defendant on a charge of public indecency. Bricktown is notable for its live music venues. Jacoby's German Biergarten (1904), the city's oldest surviving pub, provides a small performance space for up & coming acts. St. Andrew's Hall is a venue for nationally touring acts, as is the Shelter in the basement of St. Andrew's. | |
| Broadway Avenue Historic District | Broadway between Gratiot and Grand River Boulevard |
The Broadway Avenue Historic District is located along a single block of Broadway Avenue, and contains eleven commercial buildings built between 1896 and 1926. The area was developed in the late 1800s as a commercial area catering to the women's trade, and included businesses such as hairdressers, florists, corset makers, and fashionable clothiers. Three buildings in the district — the Cary Building, Harmonie Centre, and the Merchants Building — are individually listed on the NHRP. | |
| Campus Martius Park | 42°19′53″N 83°2′48″W / 42.33139°N 83.04667°W / 42.33139; -83.04667 Woodward Ave. | Campus Martius is a historic district and central gathering place which contains parks, Woodward Fountain, the Michigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument, and a large traffic circle surrounded by commercial and residential high-rises including 1001 Woodward Avenue. Since the traffic circles restoration and expansion, it has emerged as a central gathering spot downtown with a mainstage. | |
| Capitol Park Historic District | Roughly bounded by Grand River Ave., Woodward Ave., Michigan Ave., and Washington Boulevard |
Capitol Park itself is a triangular plot of land (now a public park) bounded by Shelby Street, Griswold Street, and State Street. A courthouse was built in Capitol Park in 1823-28; when Michigan became a state in 1837, the building served as the state capitol. The Historic District includes the park and seventeen surrounding buildings for a block in each direction, including the Farwell Building, the Griswold Building, the David Stott Building, and the Industrial-Stevens Apartments. | |
| Detroit Financial District | Bounded by Woodward and Jefferson and Lafayette and Washington Boulevard |
This is the historic financial district of Detroit which dates to the 1850s and contains prominent skyscrapers. Ornate skyscrapers in Detroit (including the Guardian Building, the Penobscot Building, and One Woodward Avenue), reflecting two waves of large-scale redevelopment: the first in 1900–1930 and the second in the 1950s and early 1960s. | |
| Grand Circus Park Historic District | Roughly bounded by Clifford, John R. and Adams Sts.; also 25 W. Elizabeth |
Grand Circus Park Historic District contains the 5-acre (2.0 ha) Grand Circus Park, bisected by Woodward Avenue. Notable buildings encircling the park include the David Broderick Tower and David Whitney Building on the south, the Kales Building, Comerica Park, the Fox Theatre, and the Detroit Opera House may be accessed from Grand Circus Park. St. John's Episcopal Church and the Central United Methodist Church are among the many churches and cathedtrals on Woodward Ave. | |
| Greektown Historic District | Monroe Ave., between Brush and St. Antoine Sts. |
Greektown is a primarily commercial district that extends two city blocks. It includes St. Mary Roman Catholic Church, Second Baptist Church, separately listed on the Register, Greektown Casino Hotel, and the Athenium Suite Hotel. The district contains numerous restaurants and Greek-themed shops. | |
| West Jefferson Avenue | West Jefferson Avenue runs parallel to downtown along the International Riverfront which contains the Renaissance Center, Cobo Center, a cruise ship terminal and dock, residential high rises, and a prominade of parks and marinas extending to Belle Isle. The towering Riverfront Condominiums are among the high-rise residential areas along the riverfront. The University of Detroit Mercy College of Law is across from the Renaissance Center along Jefferson Avenue. The People Mover serves the Renaissance Center and the Cobo Center along the riverfront. The Detroit People Mover stops at the Renaissance Center along West Jefferson Ave. | ||
| Lower Woodward Avenue Historic District | 1202–1449 and 1400–1456 Woodward Ave. |
The Lower Woodward Avenue Historic District contains thirty-four commercial buildings built at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, many by noted architects. It contains the downtown's historic street-side shopping district. | |
| Monroe Avenue Commercial Buildings | 16-118 Monroe Ave. |
The National Theatre (1911) at 118 Monroe Ave., the oldest surviving theatre in Detroit, is a part of the city's original theatre district from the late 1800s. Albert Kahn designed the theatre. | |
| Park Avenue Historic District | Park Ave., between W. Adams Ave. and W. Fisher Freeway |
In the 1920s, Detroit's prestigious Grand Circus Park was crowded with buildings and development began to spill north from Grand Circus Park up Park Avenue. In 1923, the Park Avenue Association was formed. They planned the street to concentrate high-grade commercial and office space at the south end, and prestigious residential development at the north end, much like New York City's Fifth Avenue. The district includes the Women's City Club, the Park Avenue House, and the Kales Building. | |
| Randolph Street Commercial Buildings Historic District | 1208–1244 Randolph St. |
Buildings along this section of Randolph Street have been used for retail since the area was first built up in the 1840s; the building at 1244 Randolph was built during the period of original construction. As the city grew, larger commercial buildings were required and the other structures on Randolph were constructed. | |
| Washington Boulevard Historic District | Washington Boulevard, between State and Clifford Sts. |
This district includes the Book-Cadillac Hotel, the Book Tower, the Industrial-Stevens Apartments, and Washington Square (Trolley Plaza) among other architecturally significant buildings. The Detroit Statler Hotel was located on the boulevard until it was demolished in 2005. The street was broadened and ornamented in the early part of the twentieth century to resemble New York's Fifth Avenue and European boulevards. |
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Famous quotes containing the word districts:
“Cities need old buildings so badly it is probably impossible for vigorous streets and districts to grow without them.... for really new ideas of any kind—no matter how ultimately profitable or otherwise successful some of them might prove to be—there is no leeway for such chancy trial, error and experimentation in the high-overhead economy of new construction. Old ideas can sometimes use new buildings. New ideas must use old buildings.”
—Jane Jacobs (b. 1916)
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