211 West Fort Street

Skyscraper in Downtown Detroit, Michigan

42°19′47″N 83°2′56″W / 42.32972°N 83.04889°W / 42.32972; -83.04889Construction started1961Completed1963HeightRoof367 ft (112 m)Technical detailsFloor count27Floor area562,027 sq ft (52,214.0 m2)[1]Design and constructionArchitect(s)Harley, Ellington, Cowin & Stirton

211 West Fort Street is a 27-story skyscraper in Downtown Detroit, Michigan, currently owned by Tribus LLC a family owned office in Grosse Pointe, MI. Construction began in 1961, and finished in 1963. The building stands at the southeast corner of Fort Street and Washington Boulevard. It was constructed adjacent to the Detroit Trust Company Building, designed by Albert Kahn in 1915, as offices for the Detroit Bank and Trust Company, later known as Comerica.[2] The bank occupied space in the building until 1993, when it moved to One Detroit Center. In the courtyard between the two buildings is a sculpture based on the bank's logo at the time.

The building currently houses offices for the Detroit Economic Club, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Visit Detroit, Majorel, the United States Attorney and several other tenants.

Architecture

The building was designed in the International style by architects Harley, Ellington, Cowin & Stirton in 1961. Tinted windows set into precast concrete frames create a unique grid pattern along the sweeping building façade. The building's address "211" is displayed along the roof line.

A dynamic two-story lobby is wrapped with glass and recessed on the north and west sides allowing for a covered arcade on two sides. Elevator banks and other interior walls are covered with black granite and floors gleam with travertine tiles. Internationally acclaimed Rosetti Architects was recently commissioned to redesign the lobby with its stunning new signature style. The site slopes from north to south allowing for a service entrance and parking garage at street level facing Congress Street.

Gallery

  • Detail of 211 West Fort St from the top of the Buhl Garage
    Detail of 211 West Fort St from the top of the Buhl Garage
  • 211 West Fort Street, as seen from Windsor, between the Westin Book-Cadillac Hotel (left) and the David Stott Building (right). Cobo Center and the Marquette Building are in the foreground
    211 West Fort Street, as seen from Windsor, between the Westin Book-Cadillac Hotel (left) and the David Stott Building (right). Cobo Center and the Marquette Building are in the foreground
  • Sculpture and entrance plaza
    Sculpture and entrance plaza

See also

References

  1. ^ "211 West Fort Street". Skyscraper Center. CTBUH. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
  2. ^ Meyer, Katherine Mattingly; Martin C.P. McElroy (1980). Detroit Architecture A.I.A. Guide Revised Edition. Introduction by W. Hawkins Ferry, Hon A.I.A. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0-8143-1651-4.

Further reading

  • Sharoff, Robert (2005). American City: Detroit Architecture. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0-8143-3270-6.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 211 West Fort Street.
  • 211 West Fort Street official site Archived August 9, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
  • Google Maps location of 211 West Fort Street
  • "Emporis building ID 118553". Emporis. Archived from the original on July 23, 2020.
  • "211 West Fort Street". SkyscraperPage.
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