Date: 06/22/2005

Condos build excitement in Midtown

June 10, 2005 BY SUZETTE HACKNEY
FREE PRESS REAL ESTATE WRITER

The energy and excitement in Midtown is palpable. Just a quick drive through the area and you'll be convinced that it is again becoming the residential mecca it once was.

The latest condominium development, called the Art Center Town & Carriage Homes, is another indication that Midtown is worth a financial, or at least an emotional, investment in the city. So much that Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick are scheduled to join in today's ribbon-cutting ceremony at 3:30 p.m. It will serve as a kickoff to the 2005 Detroit Festival of the Arts this weekend (see Page 8D and www.detroitfestival.com).

Bound by Brush, Ferry and Palmer, the 52-unit development offers the best of urban living. Most important, though, is the affordability of the condos. Because the condos are located in a Neighborhood Enterprise Zone, buyers also will get a 12-year property tax break.

The all-brick condos are selling quickly -- 21 of the 29 in the first phase already have been sold. They are attractive to single people, young couples and, because of the live-work design, people who work from home. Parents of college students also have purchased some of the condos for their children who go to nearby Wayne State University or the Center for Creative Studies.

"It's one of the last major vacant pieces in Midtown that hasn't been developed," said Colin Hubbell, one of the developers of the $10-million project. "It's filling in a piece of important urban fabric."

There are three condo styles, all with attached garages and porches or balconies.

The smallest, called the Carriage, is a two-story, 900-square-foot, one-bedroom home, designed like a historic carriage house. The living space is built over the one-car garage at a cost of $134,900.

The Midtown is a three-story, two-bedroom, 1,300-square-foot condo with an attached two-car garage for $174,9000.

The Townhouse is a three-bedroom, 1,720-square-foot, three-story house with 14-foot ceilings in the living room, hardwood floors and 2 1/2 baths for $229,900. You can visit the models at 304 E. Palmer this weekend during festival hours or call 313-358-6400.

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