As GM moves out of the Renaissance Center, businesses inside prepare for the future

DETROIT (FOX 2) - As General Motors starts a new era at Hudson’s Detroit on Woodward Avenue, it marks the end of an era at the Renaissance Center. That move by General Motors is not just impacting GM and its workers; it’s also affecting the downtown business scene.

Local perspective:

Reality is sinking in for businesses inside the Renaissance Center, the former home of General Motors’ headquarters.

"This morning was disappointing as I walked through the door. I saw them starting to take away the GM signage and all the statues that were for GM," said Joe Muer Seafood assistant general manager Lee Wasik. "It’s really happening. We heard it for a while, now we’re really seeing it happening."

As GM makes its exit from Jefferson Ave for its new global headquarters at Hudson’s Detroit, businesses at or near its former site are trying to remain optimistic.

"Obviously the impact, without having our main generator, which was having GM come through the door, every day is going to hurt us," said Wasik. "But we’re staying fairly optimistic that we’re going to try our hardest as a company to market and get people in the door," said another person.

In the restaurant industry, Joe Muer Seafood is an icon.

"I think we have the quintessential Cheers at our bar," said Wasik. "We’ve seen the same people two to three times a week for 14 years, and they’re still coming."

As GM says goodbye to Jefferson Ave and hello to Woodward Avenue, businesses near the new site are excited, and they’re rolling out the welcome mat.

Other downtown businesses are also ready to greet their new neighbor.

"We’ve been really excited because that means we get bigger lunch crowds and we get more people coming downtown in the first place—a lot more foot traffic and business on our end," said Mootz server manager Katie Reitzel.

The backstory:

Currently surrounded by walls of cement that separate the riverfront from downtown Detroit, the vision for the Renaissance Center includes reimagining the space to make it more accessible to the public and more usable to the city.

It won't be cheap though. Despite there being over $1.6 billion in original commitments to fund the redevelopment, Bedrock which is overseeing the plan will still seek state funding through Michigan's brownfield program.

The future of the Renaissance Center came into view after General Motors announced it would be leaving its historic headquarters for the newly-built Hudson's Detroit.

As tenants leave business space in downtown Detroit, questions about what to do with the available offices have only grown. With its biggest tenant leaving for another home down the street, the Renaissance Center will be downsized and turned into a combination of housing and hospitality. 

The vision was announced in January during the Detroit Policy Conference when Bedrock CEO Jared Fleisher said the goal was to return connectivity to the city.

To do that would require knocking down Tower 300 and 400, converting the central tower into a hotel with 200 apartments, while turning Tower 100 into a mix of affordable housing and apartments.

Bedrock has already committed $1 billion to the project, while GM says it will spend $250 million.