211 West Fort Street is a 27-story
skyscraper in
Downtown Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
, currently owned by Bradley J. Foster and Foster Financial Company, Inc. 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.
The bank occupied space in the building until 1993, when it moved to
One Detroit Center
Ally Detroit Center, formerly One Detroit Center, is a skyscraper and class-A office building located in Downtown Detroit, overlooking the Detroit Financial District. Rising , the 43-story tower is the tallest office building in Michigan and ...
. 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,
Visit Detroit 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
Image:211WestFort.png, Detail of 211 West Fort St from the top of the Buhl Garage
Image:211 West Fort Street.jpg, 211 West Fort Street, as seen from Windsor, between the Westin Book-Cadillac Hotel
The Westin Book Cadillac Detroit is a historic skyscraper hotel in Downtown Detroit, Michigan, within the Washington Boulevard Historic District. Designed in the Neo-Renaissance style, and opened as the Book-Cadillac Hotel in 1924, the , 31-sto ...
(left) and the David Stott Building
The David Stott Building is a 38 story high-rise apartment building with office space on floors 2-6 and retail space on the first floor. The "Stott" was originally built as a class-A office building located at 1150 Griswold Street (corner of Gri ...
(right). Cobo Center
Huntington Place (formerly known as Cobo Hall, Cobo Center, and briefly as TCF Center) is a convention center in Downtown Detroit, owned by the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority (DRCFA) and operated by ASM Global. Located at 1 Was ...
and the Marquette Building are in the foreground
Image:211 W Fort Plaza.JPG, Sculpture and entrance plaza
See also
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List of tallest buildings in Detroit
This list of tallest buildings in Detroit ranks skyscrapers and high rises in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan by height. The tallest skyscraper in Detroit is the 73-story Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center, which rises along Detroi ...
References
Further reading
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External links
211 West Fort Street official siteGoogle Maps location of 211 West Fort Street
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{{Architecture of metropolitan Detroit
Skyscraper office buildings in Detroit
1963 establishments in Michigan
Office buildings completed in 1963
International style architecture in Michigan