Chase Tower (Detroit)
Encyclopedia
Chase Tower is a high-rise office building located at 611 Woodward Avenue, in downtown Detroit, Michigan
. It was built in 1959 and stands at 14 floors in height. It was designed in the modern architectural style
, and uses a great deal of marble
to coordinate with the buildings in the nearby Civic Center. It was designed by Albert Kahn Associates.
The Chase Tower stands on the site of Detroit's first skyscraper, the Hammond Building
. The ground floor of this building is a massive 1.5-story glass sheathed, banking hall. The building was officially renamed 'Chase Tower' in late April 2006 to reflect Chase Bank's buyout of Bank One. In March 2007, the Sterling Group purchased the tower from JP Morgan Chase. Occupancy was approximately 50 percent at the time of sale. The building has had 3 official names now, for each of the 3 successive banks that have owned it: National Bank of Detroit (NBD), succeeded by Bank One, and lastly Chase.
The building has gone by several names in the past, most notably: Bank One Center, National Bank of Detroit
Building, and Bank One Building.
In April 2011, Quicken Loans
bought Chase Tower, where roughly 4,000 of the companies employees will work. The company plans to fill out available space with retail.
across the street. West Fort Street
borders the building on the north, with Cadillac Square and 1001 Woodward
across the street. Griswold Street
borders the building to the west, with the Penobscot Block
and Dime Building
across the street. West Congress Street borders the building to the south, with the Guardian Building
across the street. Across Woodward Ave. from the Guardian Building, lies Comerica Tower
, and the Buhl Building
lies across Griswold Street, to the west. The building looks similar in shape and size to the 411 Building, owned by competitor Comerica
.
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. It was built in 1959 and stands at 14 floors in height. It was designed in the modern architectural style
Modern architecture
Modern architecture is generally characterized by simplification of form and creation of ornament from the structure and theme of the building. It is a term applied to an overarching movement, with its exact definition and scope varying widely...
, and uses a great deal of marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
to coordinate with the buildings in the nearby Civic Center. It was designed by Albert Kahn Associates.
History
Hammond Building
The Hammond Building was a high-rise building completed in 1889 at the corner of Griswold Street West Fort Street in the financial district of downtown, Detroit, Michigan. The building was designed by Harry W. J. Edbrooke, and is considered the first historic steel-framed skyscraper in the city,...
. The ground floor of this building is a massive 1.5-story glass sheathed, banking hall. The building was officially renamed 'Chase Tower' in late April 2006 to reflect Chase Bank's buyout of Bank One. In March 2007, the Sterling Group purchased the tower from JP Morgan Chase. Occupancy was approximately 50 percent at the time of sale. The building has had 3 official names now, for each of the 3 successive banks that have owned it: National Bank of Detroit (NBD), succeeded by Bank One, and lastly Chase.
The building has gone by several names in the past, most notably: Bank One Center, National Bank of Detroit
National Bank of Detroit
The National Bank of Detroit , later renamed NBD Bank, was a bank that operated mostly in the Midwestern United States. Following its merger with First National Bank of Chicago, the bank was ultimately acquired and merged into Bank One, at which point the NBD name was discontinued...
Building, and Bank One Building.
In April 2011, Quicken Loans
Quicken Loans
Quicken Loans Inc., headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, is the largest online mortgage lender and the 5th largest retail mortgage lender overall in the USA. The company consists of the QuickenLoans.com online lending site, the Rock Financial brand in southeast Michigan, One Reverse Mortgage, based...
bought Chase Tower, where roughly 4,000 of the companies employees will work. The company plans to fill out available space with retail.
Location
The building is located on the block bordered by Woodward Avenue to the east, with the First National BuildingFirst National Building
The First National Building is an skycraper and class-A office center in downtown Detroit, Michigan. Completed in 1930, the structure rises 25 stories and includes two basement levels, occupying an entire block along Cadillac Square . Located within the Detroit Financial District, the tower's main...
across the street. West Fort Street
M-85 (Michigan highway)
M-85, also known as Fort Street or Fort Road for its entire length, is a state highway route in the U.S. state of Michigan.In Detroit proper, M-85 consists of West Fort street and South Fort street...
borders the building on the north, with Cadillac Square and 1001 Woodward
1001 Woodward
1001 Woodward is a mixed-use skyscraper in downtown Detroit, Michigan. The building is located just south of the neighboring David Stott Building, at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Michigan Avenue overlooking Campus Martius Park...
across the street. Griswold Street
Griswold Street
Griswold Street is a major north-south street in downtown Detroit, which passes through the city's Financial District lined with many of its most familiar and recognizable structures, such as the Guardian Building and One Woodward Avenue...
borders the building to the west, with the Penobscot Block
Penobscot Block
The Penobscot Block is a complex of office towers centered around the 45-story Penobscot Building at the corner of Griswold Street and West Fort Street in Downtown Detroit, Michigan....
and Dime Building
Dime Building
The Dime Building is a skyscraper class-A office building located in downtown Detroit, Michigan. It is adjacent to the Penobscot Building in the heart of the Detroit Financial District. The building stands 23 stories tall, with eight elevators, and was constructed between 1910 and 1912. It is used...
across the street. West Congress Street borders the building to the south, with the Guardian Building
Guardian Building
The Guardian Building is a skyscraper at 500 Griswold Street in the downtown of the city of Detroit, in the state of Michigan, in the United States of America. The Guardian is a class-A office building owned by Wayne County, Michigan and serves as its headquarters...
across the street. Across Woodward Ave. from the Guardian Building, lies Comerica Tower
Comerica Tower
One Detroit Center, also known as Comerica Tower at Detroit Center after its tenant, is a skyscraper and class-A office building located downtown which overlooks the Detroit Financial District...
, and the Buhl Building
Buhl Building
The Buhl Building is a skyscraper and class-A office center in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Architect Wirt C. Rowland designed the Buhl in a Neo-Gothic style with Romanesque accents...
lies across Griswold Street, to the west. The building looks similar in shape and size to the 411 Building, owned by competitor Comerica
Comerica
Comerica Incorporated is a financial services company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, USA. It has retail banking operations in Arizona, California, Florida, Michigan and Texas; and select business operations in several other U.S...
.