Downtown Grosse Pointe storefronts get facelifts

Thursday, September 30, 2010 | Source: Metromode

Downtown Grosse Pointe's Blockbuster store has a new look, with the Ann Taylor Loft soon to get a facelift as well.

Robert Wood, owner of Grosse Pointe-based Robert Wood & Associates, says both buildings, on Kercheval, are getting old and were ready for a revamp. The single-story Blockbuster building has new overhangs, a repaired roof, new lighting, and drainage. Faulty drainage can lead to a lot of an old building's problems.

"It always surprises when you open up these old buildings, but everything was solid behind the facade," Wood says. "You never know what you're going to get into when you peel the face off the building. You kind of hold your breath and hope that there's nothing major."

The Ann Taylor Loft building is next for a facade redesign, but there's an issue to work through: A neighboring building's condition is causing Wood and his team to reevaluate the original plan to pull the brick off the facade. Instead, they may tuck point and save it, but they'll likely have to come up with a new plan, which will probably have to go back to the city for re-approval, Wood says.

"It is an upscale store, and the building right now doesn't reflect that."

Something else to keep in mind as he works on the building is that most of the traffic comes through the back door, from municipal parking lots a block from the main street. "You really end up with two fronts to the building," he says. "Trash cans, lighting, all of that has to look equally good. It encourages people to park in the back and off the street."

Among the renovations are updated windows and doors, to make the building more energy-efficient and to be ADA-compliant. Plus, the business of restoring old buildings, as opposed to knocking them down and building new ones, is not only green, but saves time and money, and preserves the past, he says.

"It's good for the city, and it's good for the whole block," Wood says.

Source: Robert Wood, owner of Robert Wood & Associates
Writer: Kristin Lukowski