Lofts of Merchants Row in Downtown Detroit Begins Expansion Project

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The Lofts of Merchants Row, a luxury apartment complex in downtown Detroit, is expanding with a $10 million renovation of an adjacent building that will feature studio apartments, along with one- and two-bedroom units.

"The expansion at Lofts of Merchants Row is a very exciting project for Schostak Brothers because of our company's long history in Detroit and our commitment to the downtown area," says Jeffrey Schostak, vice president and director of development at Schostak Brothers & Company Inc. in Livonia, the developer of the apartment complex. "We are continuing to look for new development opportunities in the city because we believe in the market." 

The renovation of the Pepper Shoe building, located at 1413 Woodward Ave., will include combining the building with another Lofts of Merchants Row building located at 1437 Woodward Ave. by extending the hallways. Schostak says the 54,000-square-foot building will feature apartment units, a cardio center, and a covered valet parking garage.

He says the building will have a combination of 630-square-foot studios; 780 to 950-square-foot one-bedroom apartments; and 1,050-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bath units. The apartments will feature hardwood floors, granite countertops in the kitchen with stainless steel sinks, open floor plans with high ceilings and large pane windows, and walk-in full tile showers with a built-in bench in the bathroom.

Detroit-based Sachse Construction is the general contractor on the project, and Detroit-based Kraemer Design Group is the architect.

"Our current wait list at Lofts of Merchants Row is four to six months out and it's been that way for the last two years," Schostak says. "We've just launched pre-leasing efforts for the expansion and have already pre-leased 20 percent of the new apartments."

The project is scheduled to be completed next spring. The existing Lofts of Merchants Row building, located at 1247 Woodward Ave., consists of 157 units.