DETROIT— The employees of Chrysler Group LLC’s Great Lakes Business Center are up and running in their new offices in the Chrysler House today. Signs have been installed on the building’s exterior and the top two floors have been refurbished to accommodate the new tenants.
“We are proud to contribute to the continuing transformation of the Motor City,” said Reid Bigland, president and CEO – Dodge Brand and head of U.S. sales, Chrysler Group. “I am thrilled that one of my teams will be embedded in the city that means so much to our company. Detroit is the home of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Dodge Durango, SRT Viper and now a very critical part of Chrysler’s team.”
Chrysler Group leased nearly 33,000 square feet of space encompassing the top two floors of the 23-story former Dime Building, which is owned by Rock Ventures, the umbrella entity providing operational coordination and integration of Dan Gilbert‘s portfolio of companies, investments and real estate. Chrysler’s office space accommodates approximately 70 employees from the Business Center and several other corporate functions, as well as houses a large training room, a state-of-the-art board room and a kitchen.
“We are excited to get settled and to really enjoy all that downtown Detroit has to offer,” said Mike Dragojevic, head of the Great Lakes Business Center. “There is an energy and creativity around the city that is infectious.”
Located in the heart of Detroit at 719 Griswold Street, the Dime Building was built in 1912 by the Dime Savings Bank. It was designed in the Neo-classical style by Daniel Burnham, the famous Chicago-born architect whose other works are known worldwide, led by his famous Flatiron Building in New York City. The Dime building underwent extensive renovations in 2002.
Within the city of Detroit, Chrysler operates the Jefferson North and Conner Avenue Assembly Plants and the Mack Avenue Engine Complex on St. Jean Street. The Company employs nearly 4,000 people in the City of Detroit.
