Bedrock, the real estate arm of Quicken Loans Inc., today announced it has acquired the historic Buhl Building in Detroit’s Financial District (535 Griswold St.), along with the neighboring 525 Griswold Street Parking Garage (652 spaces). Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The Buhl Building, a 27-story office tower with ground-floor retail offerings that include The Buhl Bar, was designed by famed architect Wirt C. Rowland in 1925. Designed in a Romanesque and New-gothic style, the building offers 390,000 square feet of space. The building has 57 tenants, and was owned by HDC Partners in Chicago.
“As Bedrock always does for our iconic building acquisitions, our strategy for the Buhl Building balances the importance of respecting its history and architecture with ensuring a smooth transition for all of the existing tenants,” says Jim Ketai, CEO of Bedrock.
“We also look forward to improving common areas, (the) technology, and implementing modern building infrastructure in the building and garage. When the Buhl was built in the 1920s, it represented one of the most prestigious office buildings in Detroit, and we are proud to add the iconic building and garage to our portfolio.”
For its design, the Buhl Building took the form of a Latin cross, giving outside windows to every office and producing more corner locations than a traditional boxy design. Ornamentation included some 50 different symbols representing the site’s past and future, from Native American chiefs to Mercury, the Roman god of commerce.
The acquisition is part of more than 90 buildings and properties Bedrock has acquired in Detroit since 2010 when Quicken Loans moved 2,800 workers to the central business district. Today, the Quicken Loans Family of Companies has more than 17,000 employees.
For an historical account of the Buhl Building from DBusiness Magazine, click here.
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