Two big things happened this month. On the same day.
This is the second one...
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Genesee Towers (on the left) 2013
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On Sunday, December 22nd, the tallest building in Flint was demolished. Finally.
After years of controversy and legal battles over who was responsible for the building, Genesee Towers was bought from the city for $1 in 2012 by Uptown Reinvestment Corp. (www.uptownreinvestment.org) with the agreement that Uptown would pay for its demolition.
After years of controversy and legal battles over who was responsible for the building, Genesee Towers was bought from the city for $1 in 2012 by Uptown Reinvestment Corp. (www.uptownreinvestment.org) with the agreement that Uptown would pay for its demolition.
Built in the late 1960's, the Towers was the pride of downtown Flint when Flint was still riding high on the then robust auto industry.
But the '60's are long gone, and over the years Genesee Towers was sold and resold many times, steadily losing tenants along the way as businesses and population fled Flint. Its last major tenant left in 1999.
Since that time, the building was abandoned by its last owner, and left to go the way of all abandoned properties. It began to literally crumble. A barrier had to be erected around a wide perimeter of the building to keep people safe from random chunks of the building which had taken to falling down onto the street without warning (a scary thing I witnessed first hand when I was downtown on some business). The building was condemned in the early '00's.
Now, as Flint's revival gained traction downtown, the blight of Genesee Towers became a physical eyesore and a drag on the healing of the city. But no more. Because this happened on December 22nd:
But the '60's are long gone, and over the years Genesee Towers was sold and resold many times, steadily losing tenants along the way as businesses and population fled Flint. Its last major tenant left in 1999.
Since that time, the building was abandoned by its last owner, and left to go the way of all abandoned properties. It began to literally crumble. A barrier had to be erected around a wide perimeter of the building to keep people safe from random chunks of the building which had taken to falling down onto the street without warning (a scary thing I witnessed first hand when I was downtown on some business). The building was condemned in the early '00's.
Now, as Flint's revival gained traction downtown, the blight of Genesee Towers became a physical eyesore and a drag on the healing of the city. But no more. Because this happened on December 22nd:
Tick tick boom! Watching stuff implode is awesome!
And, in the blink of an eye, that (above) became this (below):
Having this building come down is a long over-due relief and it removes huge barriers, both physical and psychological, to Flint's progression into a modern college town and a once again thriving city.
There are plans for an urban plaza to be developed on the site, but this harsh winter will delay the removal of the debris, so it's hard to say when the plaza project will begin. I can't wait to see it when it's finished, though.
In less than a minute, a building came down, a sky-line was forever changed, and the course of a city was transformed. I feel privileged to be here to see it all first hand and be a part of it.
Until next time,
Robin in Flint
See more of the exciting redevelopment happening in Flint at www.uptownreinvestment.org
Learn more about Flint at www.cityofflint.com
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