Cadillac Place

:"For the downtown Detroit, Michigan office tower known as "Cadillac Tower", see Cadillac Tower.":"General Motors Building" redirects here, for the office tower in New York City with that name, see General Motors Building (New York)."

Infobox_nrhp | name =Cadillac Place
(General Motors Building)
nrhp_type = nhl


caption = Main entrance.
location= 3044 West Grand Blvd.
Detroit, Michigan
USA
lat_degrees = 42
lat_minutes = 22
lat_seconds = 7
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 83
long_minutes = 4
long_seconds = 32
long_direction = W
locmapin = Michigan
area = convert|1395000|sqft|m2|abbr=on
built =1919-1923
2002 renovation
architect= Albert Kahn; Thompson-Starrett Co.
architecture= Neo-classical
designated = June 02 1978cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1761&ResourceType=Building
title=General Motors Building |accessdate=2008-06-27|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service]
added = June 02, 1978
governing_body = Private
refnum=78001520cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2008-04-15|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]

Cadillac Place is an ornate high-rise office building in the New Center area of Detroit, Michigan constructed of limestone, granite, and marble. Originally the General Motors Building, it had housed the company's world headquarters from 1923 until 1996. In 1996, GM moved its world headquarters to the Renaissance Center and sold the magnificent building which is leased by the State of Michigan on a long term basis. The building was renamed Cadillac Place. The building takes its present name from Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, the founder of Detroit. This National Historic Landmark is one of the nation's largest historic renovation projects.

Architecture

Cadillac Place rises 15 stories with the roof height at 220 ft (67.1 m), and the top floor at 187 ft (57 m). The building has 31 elevators. Originally constructed with convert|1200000|sqft|m2, and was expanded to convert|1395000|sqft|m2. Designated a National Historic Landmark on June 2, 1978 it is an exquisite example of Neo-Classical architecture.

Designed by noted architect Albert Kahn, each of the four parallel 15-story wings connects to a central perpendicular backbone. Kahn used this design to allow sunlight and natural ventilation to reach each of the building's hundreds of individual offices. The stately structure is crowned with Corinthian colonnades. In 1923, it opened as the second largest office building in the world (behind the Equitable Building in New York City).Cite book | author=Hill, Eric J. and John Gallagher | title= AIA Detroit: The American Institute of Architects Guide to Detroit Architecture| year=2002 | publisher= Wayne State University Press | id=]

In 2002, the building was thoroughly renovated for the State of Michigan and renamed it Cadillac Place. Architect Eric J. Hill participated in the 2002 redevelopment. Cadillac Place currently houses over 2,000 state employees including the Michigan Court of Appeals for District I. The building's executive office serves as the Detroit office for Michigan's governor. It houses State offices for the Detroit area and a State Court of Appeals. Directly across from the Fisher Building to which it is connected by an underground pedestrian tunnel. Cadillac Place constitutes a formidable complex. The Detroit St. Regis Hotel adjoins the Fisher Building across from Cadillac Place.

Photo gallery

See also

* Fisher Building
* Henry Ford Hospital
* New Center, Detroit
* Penobscot Building
* Wayne State University

Notes

References

*
*
*
*

External links

* http://www.buildingphotos.com/detroit/DE-3044wgrand.shtml
* [http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=118558 Cadillac Place at Emporis.com]
* [http://www.newcenter.com/ New Center Council]
* [http://www.skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=7842 SkyscraperPage.com's Profile on Cadillac Place]