mipro Barry Sanders Project

[JBSimio 152]

Wow... don't I feel like the trend setter???

As if Simtropolis wasn't the best fansite ever... now it has one of the coolest threads ever, too!
JB

[sparkythepenguin 90]

Wow, bben following a bit on this thread, but haven't posted. Glad to see another regional group on here! Seattle, Portland, and now Detroit are in the house!

And it is also about time someone did RenCen! Are you guys going to do the entire complex or just the central tower?

Also, I was reading on The Fabulous Ruins of Detroit site about a HUGE factory that was demolished. You guys over there called it the 7 Sisters or something like that. That'd make an AWESOME ID or IM lot!

Keep up the good work and can't wait to see Commercia Center! Its a real beautiful building!

[wolverine 12]

I don't remember what factory that was at the Fab. Ruin's  Detroityes has some good pictures of the Packard plant.  Maybe we could do that since it is still there.

[budweiserdude23 80]

Hey everyone, whooo, long night....dinner parties and lots of adult beverages make for a fun night...it's cool too see that someone other than the norm had chirped in about our ideas, makes me think we're getting somewhere. Damn, I really wish I knew how to use the BAT. Am I just dumb or have I missed the memo on the fabulous ruins? What is that? Every city block outside of the immediate area of renovation that exists?

The Red Wings were awesome today..weren't they...and the Tigers too....

One more thing and this is way out of left field...4 days ago I had my heat on and tonight I had to turn the A.C. on...WTH...I live on the 3rd floor of an apartment complex but still 80 degrees shouldn't justify A.C., oh well I'm just glad the snow is gone until July (j/k)

[DARKO 3]

WoW!!!!

Havn't been on the site since earlier in the week and I find this.

I was wondering when people would discover the great architecture in Detroit and Ann Arbor, must done by Albert Khan.

I'm actually a a Urban Studies student at Wayne State, my area is Urban Design so I can help out If you need it I was planning on doing something of the sort If i ever found the time(i'm taking 11 credits and a internship during the summer so i'll be busy as hell but always have time for a little sc4. Its great to to see so many Detroiters here discussing the city. I would like to see cranbrook and the old main at wayne state done. I also think the Detroit athletic club building asnd the Gem theatre would be sweet. The old GM hq as well not too mention the Fischer building. The new DSO looks nice as well. For anyone looking for pics or more info visit Detroityes.com excellent site ,the best. later

[budweiserdude23 80]

I have just finished discussing a new name for our thread w/ an adm. named SkiGeek. BTW...thank you for checking us out skigeek...maybe you'll let others know about our project here since it seems that other cities and planets (hell guys they're doin Mars) have taken priority over one of the most influential cities in the world. ( Heck we make the cars don't we?) The post will be looked at in the next day or so......

The name I suggested to the adm. was the Barry Sanders Project..hope this doesn't upset too many of you but, it was too good of an idea and too noteworthy not too get noticed....hope I didn't offend anyone w/ this decision but the adm. thought it was a good idea....

Next thought...I know we all have the compulsions to write swear words, however they come across as words of negativity and being unintelligent...so please refrain from using them...I myself am guilty of this. Swearing can eliminate the exisitance of our posts and even our thread so we should resist temptation...

Anyways...I hope you like the thread idea...I hopefully can change it if needed but as of now there are enough votes for the thread name as I have conceded to the current name....The Barry Sanders Project..

P.S.--I think I'm going to post where to find pics of the things we have suggested so please post where you can find the pics so I can post them on the master list. Hopefully this will cut sown on some use of the bandwith, as I have ( as have many others) have been timed out, even in non-peak hours. If you can't it should be understandable...its a post...is it not? Just a thought to help my FAVORITE site ever....and no I'm not kissing butt, this site is simply awesome...what else would have brought a bunch of strangers together with such a purpose...BTW Click here to tell all other ST members the Wings will win the cup!

And one additional thing...wolverine...your avatars look great... I can't thank you enough for mine...although I can't believe nobody has requested I-69 yet, as cliche as it may be it still seems like the one most people would request...Even my g/f asked why I didn't request that one ...I had to explain why I requested M-153 (Ford Rd.).

[budweiserdude23 80]

If you haven't noticed I jumped at the chance to change the name of our thread!!!!! It should be obvious to everyone now...I've even recieved an e-mail from a member on what he'd like to render...I'm sorry if I didn't wait but I was chatting w/ an adm and he offered to change it right then and there....so here we are...now wolverine we can use your pic for our project!!!

[wolverine 12]

Got on this morning and where the heck is the 14 buildings.... Barry Sanders Project, Cool!  Well, 4 more days of college work, so I will begin working on the site on Wednesday evening, with Barry next to the logo.   I think the name is pretty neutral.  You don't have to be a Lions fan to respect the guy.  For the website, I would like to remind any other people who are following this thread that to be a member on the site, you don't have to be from Michigan.  If you are good at modeling or have some great ideas, you are more than welcome to try any of the structures on the list, or make suggestions.  We will be more than happy to provide detailed pictures to help with the modeling process. 

 

Anyways, for the next few days, I will be absent from Simtropolis unless I get distracted.  I'll be back when exams have been completed.

 

 

[JBSimio 152]

Sweet! We have our own name now. I guess I won't feel left out by the big change since it was one of my choices anyway! I wish I knew more about how to do the BAT stuff. I'm definately interested in it, but would need some serious lessons before I could really be of any use. I haven't even downloaded the program yet for cryin out loud!

Budweiserdude, I'm going to try do get to Jackson this evening after I feed some kids at work and get some pictures of the CMS building. Is there somewhere you'd like me to send it? I don't have anywhere of my own to post it.

JB

[budweiserdude23 80]

Well, just post it then. We can't all have the ability to send people to a personal website. I'll link from the list to your post.

[wolverine 12]

This post will be on the website.  Simtropolis will be within frames on the website.  I will also have links in my signature to get people to go there. 

 

 

I am taking one long exam break.  How can I study when It's the most beautiful day we have had in months!!

 

I would also like to remind you all that if you want any of the highway/freeway signs on page 5 as your avatar, I am more than willing to resize it for you.  If there is a different number that you want, just PM me and I will get it for you.

 

[Skyscraper Designer 0]

I've been gone for a couple days...It's great to see all this going on! I've got 200 photos of Detroit from Thursday that I just finished going through last night. I don't know how many will be of use to you all, but I'm sure some will be. I'll upload them later...I've got to finish some things for school before spring break is over.

[JBSimio 152]

Hmm... I hope hope this doesn't double post.  I think I screwed up.  Sorry if it does.

 

I got a couple pictures in Jackson.  They're not the best quality, but they should give you a general idea.  If anyone is truly interested in this building, I can go back and get better pics with more detail.

 

The Consumer's Energy HQ in Jackson, MI.

 

The south and east faces.  The parking garage on the east is part of the structure.

 

The north face.

 

There it is.  Cheers!

JB

[wolverine 12]

Ahhh yes, Consumer's Energy.  That building should not be too bad to do.  I would say that could almost be a landmark.  Or perhaps if it is done, it can be modded to a landmark with jobs.

[DetroitINC 0]

hey everybody

whats up anyways i like the name
consumers energy i haven't seen it done last time i was in jackson was when they were still building it
anyways saturday
me downtown
pictures of building
anything needed tell me
all ready wanted by me book tower
cass tech high school (my high school)
and the federal building
maybe a couple more anyways
5 more days any other things tell me and it will be taken k
talk to you later

INC.

[wolverine 12]

Umm, in case I don't make it to the NFL draft day event, could you take some photos of Ford Field, especially the sides facing the freeways?

 

Kind of off topic, but while searching for more closeups of Detroit Buildings online, I stumbled on the Superbowl site for Detroit.  It appears you can fill out an application form to volunteer at the 2006 Superbowl.  Hey why not try?  It seems to let you choose a position. Obviously everyone is going to shoot for in-stadium work.

http://www.sbxl.org/Volunteers/

 

 

[baldy 0]

I enjoyed the weekend weather and when I come back to check on this thread, it's 2 pages longer, has a new name (one I suggested sort of jokingly), and were getting custom avators! Wolverine, good luck on all your tests and I pm'd your for the M-102 (8 mile) It's so nice to see how this thread has taken off!

I have to agree that I would love to see some Albert Kahn. Although, he is most noted for his industrial architecture, I really love his other buildings. I recently read the book, the legacy of Albert Kahn, and I never realized just how many building he did in his life time, including a lot at U of M. 2 I would like to suggest are the Detroit Athletic club and the National Theater. It's really a shame to see what has happened to the National Theater and I hope the it will get renovated (I read 2 million to do it) soon due to it being right across the street from the compuware building.

Any one is welcome to attempt this as it will probably take me a very long time to do 150 west jefferson, which I have to do since in exchange for the architects, Heller Manus, giving me all the buiding information I need, I said I would let them see the model, so I have to do a good job. Me and my big mouth.

GO WINGS!

[DARKO 3]

Here's some Photos that i stumbled across

 

 

 

 

An example of Albert Khan and his residental style.

 

 

 

The beautiful Hecker House on Woodward Ave.

 

 

Orchestra Place on the corner of Woodward  & Mack

 

 

The African American muesem

 

 

 

[wolverine 12]

Wonderful pictures DARKO.  They are all indeed essential parts of Detroit's architecture.  I really like the orchestra place in that it was one of the first buildings in Detroit to fill in what was a parking lot.  Now if only we can fill in more of those spaces.

[DetroitINC 0]

hey yall

well im sitting here in good old school and going over some of the posts anyways
wolverine
you want pics of ford feild ya got them
anywyas i have to go to work after this so i will be on later tonight
DARKO great pics
don't forget the albert kahn building over in the new center
area its conected to the fisher building
anyways talk to you all later
peace

[budweiserdude23 80]

Hows it going everyone...god do I hate Mondays!!!I hope I didn't offend anyone by changing the name of the thread...but as I look back on it it was the name that was mentioned the most. I have just finished updating the list (the original post in this thread) with all the ideas that have been mentioned or so I hope). Man is that list getting long. You know that there are now 70 submissions of ideas on that list and only 3 are in the process of being rendered. Hopefully that will change in the near future. Anyways that's all I got for now....

[ert90 8]

This is sort of off topic, but DARKO, how did you come up with your name?

[DARKO 3]

Actually, Ert i got my name from the movie Donnie Darko, but i'm a huge pistons fan so i guess it works both ways

[Skyscraper Designer 0]

I finished uploading my Detroit photos this afternoon. I have posted them in four parts at UrbanPlanet.org, a website devoted to architecture, city planning, etc.

Part One

Part Two

Part Four

Part Five

Other Detroit Photos

I hope these help you all out! I've got a few more floating around, which I will post once I assemble a collection worth posting.

[budweiserdude23 80]

Awesome photo journal Skyscraper. Boy, in so many of your pics you can see the potential this city has, yet how far it still needs to go. If you didn't know any better you'd think many of those buildings were being occupied and were just rundown. Seems like the construction and renovation has picked up a little bit though...The picture you took of the RenCen on part I of the journal was perhaps one of the best pics of it I've ever seen. For once it didn't look as out of place as it really is. I had to laugh about the Coleman Young Center and your comment about it...the only thing they should have named after him is a compost yard or a manure farm...I can't believe people actually think he did good for the city...so for all its worth I enjoyed the journal, nice work! BTW, I see half of us have got Michigan related avatars, kinda cool, PM wolverine to get one if you want.....

[DARKO 3]

Absolutely wonderful work skyscraper, Yeah Ilitch is evil.  The man has no regard for the past, its all about progessing forward for him, but in the wrong way.  Worse than naming a building after coleman young is naming a building after Albert Cobo. He was pure trite, a racist, basically he single handily drove out big business and enlarged and provoked the racial strife in the city, and yet we name a convention center afer him?. The whole Jefferson corridor needs to be redone, i'd rip it all apart. Unfortunately we need to keep the Rencen but other than that cobo needs to go as does Joe Louis just horrible 1950's/60's civic planning, horrible! urban Renewal  Thankfully the Ford auditorium is going down for the new port authority(formely on zug island of all places). thats a start, i would bet that the city/county buildign will face the wrecking ball once the city is on the upswing,it needs to go and is on valueable real estate, lets all pray.

[budweiserdude23 80]

I wouldn't say Illitch is evil, he just has his own vision of what Downtown should be like, and he has the financial backing to fulfill his visions and in turn make himself a buck. I agree tearing down some of older buildings even though they can be renovated is a waste but I don't have millions to throw around, none of us do, and until one of us does, our vision of Detroit will never become a reality. The reality is that some of Detroit architecture is going the way of the wrecking ball whether we like it or not. Its called progress by those in charge, but hopefully someone will realise that some of this architecture is worth saving. I'll say this, if they can renovate the old train depot, then there is no building to far gone to renovate. That building, in my opinion, is the biggest eyesore in all of Detroit.

[DARKO 3]

Yes i agree about the train depot, in my opinion there is almost no building downtown built between 1950-1980 that i wouldn't tear down if given the resources to do so. The archirecture before the ninties was all marxist meets bauhaus meets cement corporate alienation(fly by night). Hideous achitecture from that era almost all of it is peorid piece architecture at its worst. Every building that we are trying to save were built before 1950, that says something about the city's gradual decline, when the bulk of detroit skyscrapers were built(late 20's) they were world class buildings that rivaled New York, Chicago..... It showed that Detroit was a world class city, as they used to say The Paris of North America. For almost the past 30 years Detroit settled for absolute bare minimum, tackiness at its most extreme, Its so sad I see this everyday and it makes me cringe, thats really why i got into Urban studies/Design was to fix this problem, and bring back some pride to the city, something that is severely lacking

[hogmeister 7]

Well, I am amazed, great set of photos of Detroit, I just spent half an hour ploughing through them, joys of 56K, its been a long, long time since I was there, about 20 years ago, when I worked for Detroit Bank & Trust at their London Branch, which them became Comerica Bank. My how things have changed, some good buildings have been built, but some really good ones have been let go, why has it gone this way? I would be interested to know, there is a lot of construction going on, but where have all the people gone, there was hardly anyone walking about, now I know its not the UK but I would have expected to see a few more than that and so many vacant lots, it makes the whole cityscape lose its cohesiveness, a crying shame. Now I know that there was a lot of construction going on but things did look a bit kind of seedy and dirty, is there a reason for that, I remember the place with just a lot more people around and more lively (not always for the right reason) and cleaner, or was it just because with more people around you didn

[DetroitINC 0]

ok now you have me mad lol

for one great pics skyscraper
for 2 screw coleman young and the horse he road in one
thank god that hes gone
he was a worthless peice of trash
just like our new mayor kilpatrick
but 3 the old train station
that is my favorite
one of the most beautiful buildings in the city of detroit
you can't look at it now and say that it is but if you really looked at the designs and architecture then you would see how wonderful this building really is
not only does this building give memories to so many detroit residents
but its is a landmark from the 1920, when detroit was an alive and well.
if you were to tear that building down you not only would be destroying history but destroying the stories and memories to a great many people
this building is irreplaceble.