Jul 13, 2023 - Real Estate
Detroit by Drone: Boblo building demolition
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What's left of the Boblo building. Photos: Samuel Robinson/Axios
The long-abandoned Boblo Island Dock building won't be standing for much longer.
Why it matters: The building where passengers once boarded steamships to an amusement park on Boblo Island is now among the city's worst commercial blight.
The intrigue: The Detroit Wayne County Port Authority owns the building but ceded control of it to the Moroun family's Ambassador Port Co. under a complicated agreement reached during former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's tenure.
- Ambassador is paying for the demolition that began in April.
Zoom in: Legendary architect Albert Kahn designed the warehouse that opened in 1926 to store maritime cargo.
- Its name stems from large ads painted on the building for the Boblo amusement park ferry service, which was discontinued in the 1990s.
