University Club next to fall?

**bailey** · April-01-10, 01:39 PM

Originally Posted by n7hn

SO........ the big question now is.....who is gonna be so outraged.....to file the application for historical status/protection?

and I agree the YWCA should also be somewhat accountable, even just morally. A couple businesses show at that address so apparently they had some rental income off it as well , shame shame

to your first; i'm betting no one.

To your second, let's not let the Club itself off the hook. If Grand Rapids can keep a university club going since the 20s how can the Detroit area not? Hell, just about every major city in the country has a U club. Is there really not a market for it here, but there is one in Phoenix?

**EastsideAl** · April-01-10, 01:56 PM

The University Club went bankrupt in 1992.

I would guess that Grand Rapids has a greater percentage of its business community in the central city than Detroit does. Almost all other sizable cities do. But with the extreme decentralization of business and offices in Detroit, the core population isn't really there for many of old-style clubs like this. The DAC still operates, and Yondetega obviously, there's still a club in the Ren Cen - any others downtown? Is the Detroit Club still active? The Racquet Club?

**bailey** · April-01-10, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by EastsideAl

The University Club went bankrupt in 1992.

I would guess that Grand Rapids has a greater percentage of its business community in the central city than Detroit does. Almost all other sizable cities do. But with the extreme decentralization of business and offices in Detroit, the core population isn't really there for many of old-style clubs like this. The DAC still operates, and Yondetega obviously, there's still a club in the Ren Cen - any others downtown? Is the Detroit Club still active? The Racquet Club?

Ok, so Detroit has fallen so far that it can't support a U club. Fine. I'll concede that. Lord knows that a college education is generally a ticket out of here, so I can see how the U Club might have found it hard to recruit. So here we are again... stuck with a purpose built property that no longer has a purpose. Not only does it not have a purpose, its done the standard 20 year Detroit death spiral from functioning but needing repairs building; to incompetent stewards with grandiose ideas; to being destroyed by scrappers; to the final hue and cry over it's inevitable ignominious end.