Detroit News Building

Client Bedrock
Location Detroit, Michigan
Size 400,000 sf
Sector Commercial
Services Architecture, Engineering, Consulting, Restoration, Interior Design
Completion 2017
Facade of a historic government or municipal building with an American flag on top, large arched windows, and a street view in an urban setting.

Detroit, Michigan | Adaptive Reuse and Historic Renovation

Albert Kahn designed the Detroit News Building at 615 W. Lafayette Boulevard in downtown Detroit, and the building opened in 1917 as home to the Detroit News. One hundred years later, Albert Kahn Associates returned to lead the building's renovation and restoration, adapting the former newspaper headquarters for new owners and a new generation of collaborative workers.

History

The Detroit News occupied the building from its opening in 1917 until 2014. At the time of its completion, it was believed to be the largest newspaper plant in the world.

The building's exterior features four statues honoring figures who shaped the printing industry: Johannes Gutenberg, William Caxton, Christophe Plantin, and Benjamin Franklin. Panels between the statues carry a message for all who enter or pass by, that the news exists for the people, "a light shining into all dark places."

Original Building Layout

The first floor originally held shipping and storage areas along with the plant's pressroom, where numerous printing presses printed, cut, folded, and counted the newspapers, visible to the public through large windows. On the floors above, hundreds of employees wrote, set, and edited the paper each day. The fifth floor originally featured a long roof monitor that brought in natural light, later removed when a sixth floor was added.

Renovation and Restoration

As the media industry changed, the building underwent alterations that hid or destroyed many original architectural details. Kahn's renovation brought many of those details back to the forefront. New ornamental elements replicate the original barrel vaults and period ornamentation as closely as possible. A new data center now occupies the space once used for printing presses. The exterior façade was restored and the building was brought up to modern code. Open workspaces were designed for new tenants, and building systems were redesigned to meet current occupant needs while delivering significant operational savings.

Empty lobby with marble floors, arched doorways, high ceilings, and a large hanging light fixture. There are two elevators at the back with closed doors.
Modern office with red columns, seating area with chairs and tables, open workspace with employees working at desks, large windows, and digital screens.
Office cubicles in a modern, open-layout workspace with high ceilings and skylights, featuring several employees working at their computers.
Building construction mural in an indoor corridor with a black metal railing and ceiling lights.
Close-up of a beige stone building with an ornate shield crest featuring an eagle and a star, with decorative columns, and an American flag hanging on the side under a clear blue sky.
A historic multi-story beige stone building with an American flag on top, featuring arched windows on the ground floor, situated along a street in an urban area.
Office corridor with glass-enclosed meeting rooms, black-and-white photos on the wall, red and gray carpet tiles, and a shiny wooden floor.
An old multi-story building with arched windows on the ground floor, situated on a city street with parked cars and bike racks. The building has flags on its rooftop and construction work is visible on the surrounding streets.
Interior view through a glass door with an archway, showing a lobby area with a window, a hanging spherical chandelier, and parked cars outside. An illuminated red 'EXIT' sign is above the door.
The image shows a spacious, elegant hotel lobby with a marble floor, decorative archways, and detailed ceiling moldings. There is a desk with a lamp and a person seated behind it, and a staircase with black and gold handrails leading up to a balcony.
An ornate antique wall-mounted lamp with a glass globe on a decorative metal arm attached to a beige building exterior, with detailed architectural molding near the lamp.
A hallway with white tiled floors and white ceiling, walls decorated with black and white photos of buildings and city scenes.

Detroit News Building FAQ’s

  • Albert Kahn designed the Detroit News Building, which opened in 1917 at 615 W. Lafayette Boulevard in downtown Detroit.

  • The Detroit News occupied the building from its 1917 opening until 2014.

  • Four statues on the building's exterior honor figures who shaped the printing industry: Johannes Gutenberg, William Caxton, Christophe Plantin, and Benjamin Franklin.

  • Albert Kahn Associates, the successor firm to the building's original architect, led the renovation and adaptive reuse of the Detroit News Building for new owners and tenants.

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