It's been a landmark near the Wayne State campus for more than a century and now there's new life on the horizon for the Forest Arms Apartments.
A devastating and deadly fire took place in February of 2008 and for years after that, historic Forest Arms sat damaged and vacant. The building of iconic architectural features dates back to 1905.
It seemed destined for demolition, but developer Scott Lowell saw opportunity.
"It's a far more noble and honorable thing to do to save something like this, if you can do it, and they're happy and they're paying the rent and you're happy, there's no reason not to," Lowell says.
For 20 months, crews have been at work. The first order of business was to replace the roof that had been destroyed in the fire.
Detroit 2020 was first inside in November of 2014 when financing was in place and the interior work had begun in earnest on the $10 million project.
Today, we got another look as the pace quickens toward completion. The project seems to be on its way to a wonderful conclusion for sure.
There's a model apartment to show potential tenants. Original elements have been retained wherever possible. There are 70 units in all, including nine 2-bedroom apartments.
The building is coming back on line at a time of great demand for housing in midtown.
"We've got some tile work, we've got some trim, we are doing some drywall in the penthouse. Of course some landscaping,” says Lowell. “We're not going to leave it looking like this. And some window trim out here and then we'll be able to move people in."
Twenty-four of the units have already been leased. And while there is work to be done, tenants will be moving in on May first.
