mini D-velopment tour

the other day the wife and i took a drive around town to glance at the developments and all that's going on in the D...

after a nice workout at the Y we made our way towards the RenCen to drive Atwater/the riverfront... we were particularly interested in seeing Asian Village (corner of Atwater and Beaubien) because they were supposed to open on May 1, but that obviously hasn't happened... it looks pretty far along, but i wish they'd open up already... i've been waiting over a year for that place to open!!! we then drove further down Atwater towards what will be the riverfront's new Rivard Plaza... they're working on the carousel that's supposed to be accessible come June... that'll be nice... furher east we went to spy where the Atwater Lofts and Watermark Loft developments will hopefully be springing up within the next year or so... i would LOVE to live in either of those communities... hopefully i'll have some cash in my pocket by then!!! we took Atwater all the way to Jos Compau and re-reminded ourselves that we have to checkout the Atwater Block Brewery sometime as well as the other fine establishments on that little strip...

from Jos Campau we went back to Jefferson and headed back west to go straight north on Woodward... we got a good look at the Vinton Building... looks like their ground floor is almost done... as we headed north, i realized that i'll never get tired of driving around Campus Martius Park... i just love that fountain and what the park itself represents... 1001 Woodward is another place i would LOVE to live... up through the Fox Center/Stadium district we went and then we hung a right on Winder to stroll through Brush Park... in 10 years, Brush Park is going to be one of the finest neighborhoods in the city... those mansions are just plain incredible... and yes, i'd LOVE to live in one of those too...

from Brush Park the wife and i then went up Woodward over to north Midtown, just above the Cass Corridor (where we live actually)... on our way there we past the Ellington, which is an awesome building. but doesn't seem as full as it should be or as full as it says it is (70%)... anyways, in north Midtown i was a little disappointed to see the Nine on Third project... it's kinda ugly, but it's better than something abandoned... the Springfield Lofts (Second and Alexandrine) are pretty sweet, but the neighborhood there still needs some developing... the Elmoore and the Alex (i think that's what they're called) condo/loft developments are supposed to go up across the street from the Springfield Lofts, but they've been saying that for a while... the Willys Overland Lofts seem to be well underway and it's a pretty big project... those are going to be some pretty sweet lofts when they're done... in my own building, the Stuberstone we're having a tenant move in downstairs, i think... i wish they'd move in already so that we could know what to expect... prolly a doctor's office... i think they were wanting a restaurant, but i think i'd rather have a doctor's office... across the street is what was once called the Auburn Lofts... i think they decided not to make the building into lofts anymore and i'm not sure if they have any tenants for that one either... maybe???

all in all, it was an encouraging look at the D... but only if you have the eyes to see it...

p.s. i was too lazy to posts links for this entry... sorry...