A few weeks ago my older brother emailed me and my younger brother to see if we were interested in a Tiger game. I hadn't been to see a game in quite awhile and the only time I was at the new stadium was a few years ago for a Bon Jovi concert so I was up for it. An additional benefit was that my younger brother was a half season ticket owner up until a couple of years ago so he knew where to park and how to get there so of course, he was the chosen one to drive.
After we met up a convenient location for everyone, we piled into the CRV and headed down. It took us only 30 minutes or so to get there but as I was staring out of the backseat window, I was fascinated by everything - white people jogging, the torn down old Tiger Stadium, streets I had heard of only on the news. My brother finally arrived at the parking structure that he usually parks at which is a few blocks away. To give you an idea how far...it cost us $8. The parking lots right next to the stadium are $25.
I had heard about this parking structure with its ornate carvings inside so it was fascinating to see it for myself especially after reading a recent edition of Time about the fall of Detroit. In it, they mentioned a theater that was then converted into a parking structure and included a picture of this ornate building with cars parked on what looked like the floor of what was once an auditorium:
Lo and behold, this parking structure I was in was the infamous Michigan Theater that was turned into a parking structure.
I didn't have time to explore but as I was fascinated by the building so the next day, I Googled it and found this before and after shot:
For the ballgame we parked just to the left of where the cars are in the 'Present' photo. When I found this picture, I just stared at these two pictures that were obviously taken in the same direction and how much it has changed and the stories it could tell. You could still see the holes where the chandeliers once hung in what was the lobby. I had never met this this building before but I felt overwhelmingly sad.
I know this has been happening all over Detroit as shown in the slideshows that accompanied the Time article online (some of which are found here with the second most disturbingly neglected building being the train station) but it had always felt so remote since I don't live here and rarely visit it until I actually saw the beauty of one of these places that still remains. I can't imagine how hard it must be for people that remember when Detroit was the place to be and seeing how far it has fallen or having seen a show in this theater and now you were parking your car at about the same area you once sat or loving architecture like this and the train station and seeing what it could be one day again but unable to do anything about it.
8 comments:
You had me worried! I thought the D was the D Mark Chesnut was singing about and I was like "Oh no! Well that explains the two-week blogging hiatus." I'm relieved to hear this is just about Detroit!
I'm kind of scared of Detroit to be honest. Like... I think I'll avoid it at all costs, scared of it.
That's sad about theatre. On one hand, I'm glad they didn't just tear it down, but on the other... I sometimes wonder why fancy, shiny multiplexes are seen as better than something with that old beauty and history.
You have me wondering if Ypsilanti is to Detroit, like Gresham,Fairview,Troutdale and a host of other small communities are to Portland. ALL PART OF THE SAME MESS.
I think I asked you once before, but aren't you in the same general area as that rapper from 6,7 or 8 mile street or whatever, named after those candies?
I don't like big cities anymore.
I second TC's view on the loss of the theatre.
But to answer his question...$$$$$$
TC - It can't be worse than Milwaukee can it? :-)
Sotamies - I am not in the same general area. I am due west of Detroit in an area that is not thought of as a suburb of Detroit...yet troublemakes from Detroit find themselves here for some strange reason.
When watching 'Guiliana and Bill' on the Style network, I'd love to live in a big city like they do (Chicago) and have all the mom and pop places one would need in walking distance. Of course that sounds great now until it rains and I don't want to walk 2 blocks to get milk for the cereal I want. :-)
Big A and I talked about the money issue for these buildings but there is still a huge problem with vandalism even if you did have enough money to make it useful. One nice building in a 4 block radius of other delapidated buildings would be a neon sign for trouble, I would think.
Who are the tigers? Baseball? Football minor league for the Lions?
P.S. My sidebar was write. You may have posted this last night but the date at the top is six days old!
ACK! I saved it as a draft and forgot to update the date! Thanks for mentioning it. I'm going to correct that or else it will bother me. I like being on top...of people's links.
Well, I try to avoid Milwaukee at all costs, too. Other than Miller Park, which is on the outter edges, making it so I don't have to go through Milwaukee.
Well enjoyed the game in Detroit earlier this year, but we won't have to worry about finding playoff tickets after last night's disaster, will we? Too bad, I'll just keep on rooting for the Pirates who haven't had a winning season in 20 years.
Thank God for the Steelers and Penguins. I want to find a shirt that says: "Pittsburgh. Kicking ass on ice and grass."
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