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By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief
DETROIT — Often those of us who have a strong appreciation for the preservation of history find pessimism toward the restoration of historical buildings, often from those citing cost and logistics as hurdles.
Michigan Central Station, 2405 West Vernor Hwy., is a testament to historical preservation and restoration. After years of decline with no clear vision, Ford Motor Company purchased the building in 2018 and has restored it to its former glory. There are even plans to restore passenger rail service on the building’s campus.
Built in 1914, the station is a symbol of the mighty city Detroit had become. For 74 years it served as the main intercity passenger rail station in Detroit.
When built it was the tallest rail station in the world, consisting of a train depot and a 230-foot high office tower with 13 stories above the two mezzanine levels. Built in the Beaux-Arts architectural style, it is located in the Corktown district near the Ambassador Bridge.
The building, operated by Michigan Central Railroad, began operation on Jan. 4, 1914, replacing the prior Michigan Central Station which had burned on Dec. 26, 1913. The prior station was inconveniently located on a spur while the new station was on the main line.
In 1917, at the beginning of World War I, more than 200 trains left the station every day. In the 1940s, more than 4,000 passengers a day used the station and more than 3,000 people worked in its office tower.
Following World War II, automobile ownership increased and passenger rail service declined through the United States. The building’s owner, the New York Central Railroad, attempted to sell it in 1956 and again in 1963. Several entities closed inside the facility by 1967 including the restaurant, arcade shops, and the main entrance and the main waiting room. Only two ticket windows were left to serve passengers, who needed to use the same parking lot as railroad employees who worked in the building.
Amtrak assumed national passenger rail service in 1971 and reopening the main waiting room and entrance in 1975. It started a $1.2 million renovation project in 1978, but the buliding was sold six years later and was slated to become a transportation center, which never happened.
It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
On Jan. 6, 1988, the last Amtrak train left Michigan Central Station. That service continued at a platform on Rose Street.
In 1996, Controlled Terminals, Inc., owned by the same corporation that owns the Ambassador Bridge, acquired the station. The company demolished the train shed in 2000 and converted the remaining tracks and platforms into a freight facility that was operated by Canadian Pacific Railway. The facility was closed in 2004.
Several uses for the building were pursued including turning it into the Detroit Police Department headquarters and making it into a casino. By August 2016, the Moroun family, owners of the company that owned the station, had spent $12 millions over the previous decade on various improvements to the building.
In 2018, the building’s ownership was transferred to New Investment Properties I LLC, owned by Ford Motor Company. Ford planned to turn the building into a hub for its autonomous vehicle development and deployment and as an anchor for the company’s Corktown campus. The building would hold both Ford offices and offices of suppliers and partner companies with the first floor hosting restaurants and retail shops. Plans were made for housing on the top floors.
Plans were announced in 2023 by Amtrak and VIA Rail Canada that rail service from the building, or its campus, would possibly be restored.
Today, the building’s main floor is open to the public and is a worth a visit. It is symbolic of the revitalization of Detroit and provides hope for Michigan’s future again as an technological and industrial leading state.
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