Hudson's Detroit

This article is about the skyscraper in downtown Detroit. For the department store chain whose flagship store once stood on the site, see Hudson's. For its flagship store, see J. L. Hudson Department Store and Addition.

Hudson's Detroit
Exterior in November 2025
Interactive map of Hudson's Detroit
General information
StatusCompleted
Location1208 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48226
Coordinates42°20′02″N 83°02′53″W / 42.33389°N 83.04809°W / 42.33389; -83.04809
Construction startedDecember 14, 2017
Topped-outApril 10, 2024
CompletedAugust 22, 2025
Cost$1.4 billion
OwnerBedrock Detroit
Height208.9 meters (685.4 ft)[1][2]
Technical details
Floor area130,064 m2 (1,400,000 sq ft)
Design and construction
ArchitectsSHoP Architects
Hamilton Anderson Associates
DeveloperBedrock Detroit
Main contractorBarton Malow
Other information
Public transit access Cadillac Center
QLine Campus Martius
DDOT 4
Website
https://www.hudsons-detroit.com/

Hudson's Detroit is a mixed-use building complex located in Downtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is located on the former site of the J.L. Hudson's Flagship Store, and consists of two buildings: a 49-story, 681-foot (208 m) skyscraper, with a hotel and condominiums,[3] and a 12-story,[4] 232-foot (71 m) building,[5][6] containing commercial offices, retail space, and a conference center.[4] The taller tower is the second-tallest building in Detroit as well as in Michigan,[1][7] and is the first skyscraper taller than 500 feet (150 m) to be built in Detroit in the 21st century. The shorter building was completed in 2025.[8]

History

Site

Further information: J. L. Hudson Department Store and Addition

1208 Woodward Avenue is situated in Downtown Detroit, bounded by Grand River Avenue to the north, Farmer Street to the east, and Gratiot Avenue to the south. The entire block was once the home to Hudson's flagship store, which was built in phases between 1911 and 1946. It was the tallest department store in the world, at 440 ft (134 m), and the second largest department store by area in the world, behind Macy's Herald Square in New York City.[9]

The store closed in 1983, and was imploded in 1998, making it the tallest building to ever be demolished by controlled implosion.[10][11] In 2001, an underground parking garage was constructed at the site, designed to support a structure of up to 18 floors on top.[12][13]

Redevelopment planning

Rock Ventures gained the rights to develop the site in 2007; it was initially considered as a site for the headquarters of Quicken Loans.[11] In March 2013, after over a decade of little activity at the site, Dan Gilbert announced a competition seeking ideas for development of the site.[14][15] The contest received 200 submissions, and was won by two architects from Italy.[16] That November, Rock Ventures hired SHoP Architects to lead the design of the development, with Detroit-based Hamilton Anderson Associates serving as a local partner.[17]

An initial design of the planned building was leaked in March 2015.[18] Rock's real estate division, then known as Bedrock Detroit, purchased the city-owned parking garage in April 2016.[11]

When plans for the development were first revealed in February 2017, the taller tower was planned to rise 734 feet (224 m), narrowly surpassing the Renaissance Center as the tallest building in Detroit and in Michigan.[18] Its proposed height was expanded to 800 feet (240 m) in September 2017, and by 2018, Bedrock was publicly considering heightening the tower to 912 feet (278 m).[18] By 2019, plans were scaled back, shortening the tower and removing a proposed observation deck.[18][19] Its final height of roughly 680 feet (210 m) was announced in March 2020.[6][20]

Construction

Ground was broken on December 14, 2017.[21] Construction began with the removal of the underground parking garage that had been built in 2001. In March 2020, construction progress was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but resumed after 45 days. In December of the same year, construction reached above the ground for the first time.[22]

Completion

The high-rise tower was topped out on April 10, 2024; two days later on April 12, the development's final name, Hudson's Detroit, was announced.[23] On April 15, General Motors announced that it would relocate its global headquarters from the Renaissance Center to the top two floors of the mid-rise tower;[24] in November, GM expanded its planned lease to four floors.[25]

Design

The development was designed by SHoP Architects. It consists of two buildings, linked by a 700-space underground parking garage.[26]

Tenants

General Motors is expected to be the largest office tenant in the mid-rise building, with its global headquarters slated to occupy floors 8 through 11 beginning in January 2026.[25][27] GM will operate a vehicle showroom on the ground floor, and large signs with the company's logo will be placed on all four sides of the building.[24] It will also include the headquarters of Rock Holdings, the Gilbert Family Foundation,[28] and the Ven Johnson Law Firm, and offices of JPMorgan Chase and Accenture.[29] As of October 2025, all of the announced office tenants are relocating from other Detroit buildings.[28]

On April 17, 2024, Bedrock announced that the taller tower would consist of a five-star EDITION hotel and 97 luxury condominiums, to be completed by 2027.[30]

Construction Progress
  • Elevator shafts of the 14 story block
  • Construction progress at Northwestern corner of site
  • Project barrier displaying nearby points of interest
  • Progress as of February 2023, from Madison and John R Streets
  • Progress as of August 2022
  • Progress as of April 2024

References

  1. ^ a b "Hudson's Site". Hudson's Site. Bedrock Management Services LLC. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  2. ^ Williams, Candice (11 April 2024). "Hudson's site tower reaches final height in downtown Detroit". The Detroit News. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  3. ^ Reindl, J. C. (2024-04-11). "Hudson's site skyscraper reaches full height, is Detroit's 2nd tallest building". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
  4. ^ a b Williams, Candice (2025-10-09). "Hudson's Detroit opens office building with a 7-story atrium, lots of amenities". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
  5. ^ "Minutes of the Board of Zoning Appeals" (PDF). Detroit Board of Zoning Appeals. 2020-04-28.
  6. ^ a b Mondry, Aaron (20 March 2020). "Development news roundup: impact of coronavirus, Hudson's tower height revealed". Curbed Detroit. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  7. ^ "Hudson's site tower will not be tallest in Michigan after all, CEO for Gilbert's Bedrock says". 29 January 2020.
  8. ^ "Detroit Hudson's Site expected to be complete in 2024 despite challenges, changes". WXYZ. 2022-01-12. Retrieved 2022-04-18.
  9. ^ "Greater Hudson Store, Detroit - SkyscraperPage.com". skyscraperpage.com. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  10. ^ "Homrich Hudson's" (PDF). Homrich. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 24, 2014. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  11. ^ a b c Reindl, J. C.; Gallagher, John (2016-04-27). "$15M deal OK'd for Gilbert to build on Hudson's site". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  12. ^ Abbey-Lambertz, Kate (2013-06-12). "LOOK: These Are The Winning Hudson's Site Designs". HuffPost. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  13. ^ Sewick, Paul (2017-11-21). "The past, present, and future of the Hudson's site". Curbed Detroit. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  14. ^ "Gilbert seeks ideas for developing Hudson's site in Detroit". Detroit Free Press. Archived from the original on 2013-03-03. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  15. ^ Beshouri, Paul (2013-02-28). "Competition to Design Future Hudson's Development is Real". Curbed Detroit. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  16. ^ Bentley, Chris (2013-07-25). "Design Competition Reimagines Detroit's Hudson's Department Store Site". The Architect’s Newspaper. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  17. ^ "New York-based SHoP Architects selected to design development at former Hudson's site in downtown Detroit". mlive. 2013-11-25. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  18. ^ a b c d Pinho, Kirk (2019-08-07). "Bedrock: Hudson's site tower may end up not being tallest building, skydeck dropped". Crain's Detroit Business. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  19. ^ Williams, Candice (2019-08-07). "Hudson's site tower might not be tallest in state, sky deck is out". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  20. ^ Pinho, Kirk (2019-08-07). "Bedrock: Hudson's site tower may end up not being tallest building, skydeck dropped". Crain's Detroit Business. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  21. ^ "J.L. Hudson site development starting". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2025-12-06.
  22. ^ Grzelewski, Jordyn. "Construction on Bedrock's Hudson's site now above ground". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  23. ^ Pinho, Kirk (2024-04-12). "Hudson's site project gets its official name".
  24. ^ a b "GM to move headquarters from RenCen to Hudson's site". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
  25. ^ a b "GM doubles leased space in Detroit Hudson's building to 4 floors". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2024-12-06.
  26. ^ "Bedrock - Hudson's Site". www.bedrockdetroit.com. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  27. ^ Reindl, J. C. "General Motors logo affixed to top of new Hudson's office building". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
  28. ^ a b Pinho, Kirk (2025-10-09). "Bedrock finishes its work on Hudson's Detroit office building". Crain's Detroit Business. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
  29. ^ Reindl, J. C. (2025-11-05). "JPMorgan Chase to move into new Hudson's office building". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
  30. ^ "Luxury hotel and condos will occupy Hudson's Detroit tower". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2024-04-19.
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