flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Guardian Building, Detroit, Mich.

Guardian Building, Detroit, Mich.


By By Robert Cassidy, Editorial Director | October 12, 2010

The relocation and consolidation of hundreds of employees from seven departments of Wayne County, Mich., into the historic Guardian Building in downtown Detroit is a refreshing tale of smart government planning and clever financial management that will benefit taxpayers in the economically distressed region for years to come.

The Guardian Building was designed by Wirt C. Rowland, of Smith Hinchman and Grylls (now SmithGroup) and completed in 1929 as the Union Guardian Building. It combined Native American, Aztec, and Arts & Crafts influences in an inspiring display of Art Deco enthusiasm, with polychromed terra cotta on its exterior, travertine marble from Italy and Numidian marble from Africa on the walls and floors, Monel metal in the ornamental screen in the lobby, custom tiles by Mary Chase Stratton’s Pewabic Pottery, and sculpted architectural reliefs by Corrado Parducci—no wonder people called it “The Cathedral of Finance.” It has been designated a National Historic Landmark.

For two decades, the county had been paying $5.2 million a year in rent for space at 600 Randolph in Detroit—more than $100 million total. Seven years ago, as the lease was running out, the county purchased the Guardian Building (along with another building and a parking structure) for $14 million and bonded another $13.5 million for tenant improvements.

By 2008, with construction costs at favorable levels, the county bonded for another $30 million to change the project scope and accelerate the capital improvement schedule. The Building Team brought the project in at $33,261,000 in construction costs, $11,535,000 (25.7%) below budget.

The HVAC system was upgraded, improving indoor air quality and energy efficiency, and a distributed direct digital controls system was installed, along with video conferencing technology, flat screen monitors for public presentations, electronic faxing to reduce the use of paper, and Voice Over IP, which eliminated 3,500 land lines and will save $500,000 in phone costs.

Instead of shelling out $5.2 million a year at 600 Randolph, plus $1 million at another building, the annual operating costs for the county’s space in the Guardian Building is only $1.9 million. With payment of the debt service, taxpayers will come out $2 million ahead every year—and the county owns a historic building with an estimated current value of $60-100 million. BD+C

PROJECT SUMMARY

Building Team

Owner: Department of Economic Development, Wayne County, Mich.

Submitting firm: SmithGroup (architect, AOR, SE/MEP engineer)

Property manager: Sterling Group

Construction administrator: Hines

General contractor: Sachse Construction/Tooles Contracting Group JV

General Information

Area: 495,600 rentable sf

Construction Cost: $33,261,000

Construction time: September 2008 to December 2009

Delivery method: PM/GC

Related Stories

Architects | Jun 4, 2018

Changing the way we think about water and design

We have several gaps between the need and desire to have abundant, accessible, clean water and the reality of dealing with on-going and increasing water shortage crises.

Libraries | Jun 1, 2018

New library offers a one-stop shop for what society is craving: hands-on learning

Beyond lending books and DVDs, the Elkridge (Md.) branch library loans household tools like ladders, wheelbarrows, and sewing machines.

| May 30, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: Seven technologies that restore glory to the master builder

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), AEC technophile Rohit Arora outlines emerging innovations that are poised to transform how we design and build structures in the near future.

| May 30, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: Why the AEC industry must adapt to the Internet of Things boom

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), building systems expert Jeff Carpenter explores established and emerging IoT applications for commercial and institutional buildings, and offers a technology roadmap for navigating the IoT landscape.

| May 30, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: T3 mass timber office buildings

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), architect and mass timber design expert Steve Cavanaugh tells the story behind the nation’s newest—and largest—mass timber building: T3 in Minneapolis.

| May 30, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: From micro schools to tiny houses: What’s driving the downsizing economy?

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), micro-buildings design expert Aeron Hodges, AIA, explores the key drivers of the micro-buildings movement, and how the trend is spreading into a wide variety of building typologies.

Market Data | May 29, 2018

America’s fastest-growing cities: San Antonio, Phoenix lead population growth

San Antonio added 24,208 people between July 2016 and July 2017, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

| May 24, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: The rise of multi-user virtual reality

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), two of CannonDesign's tech leaders present their early findings from pilot testing multi-user VR technology for AEC project coordination.

| May 24, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: The next frontier of post-occupancy evaluations

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), ZGF Architects’ Chris Chatto outlines methods for conducting meaningful, holistic evaluations from design to occupancy.

| May 24, 2018

Accelerate Live! talk: Security and the built environment: Insights from an embassy designer

In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), embassy designer Tom Jacobs explores ways that provide the needed protection while keeping intact the representational and inspirational qualities of a design.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category


Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Capital Improvement Plans (CIPs) typically span three to five years and outline future city projects and their costs. While they set the stage, the design and construction of these projects often extend beyond the CIP window, leading to a disconnect between the initial budget and evolving project scope. This can result in financial shortfalls, forcing cities to cut back on critical project features.



Libraries

Reasons to reinvent the Midcentury academic library

DLR Group's Interior Design Leader Gretchen Holy, Assoc. IIDA, shares the idea that a designer's responsibility to embrace a library’s history, respect its past, and create an environment that will serve student populations for the next 100 years.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021