Detroit council committee hears GM/Bedrock plan to reconfigure Renaissance Center; rejects immediate historic designation

General Motors and developer Bedrock presented a redevelopment plan for the Detroit Renaissance Center during the Planning & Economic Development Standing Committee meeting, proposing to remove two towers, open the podium to the riverfront, build riverfront public space and an adjacent entertainment district, and preserve the skyline’s visual character. The committee sent related items to formal session, including a motion that would recommend denying a local historic-designation study and a request to draft a resolution to lift privilege on the law department’s report.

The proposal matters because the Renaissance Center sits at Detroit’s riverfront and is a major downtown landmark and employer. Proponents said comprehensive redevelopment — not preservation that restricts changes — is the only viable path to make the structure economically sustainable and reconnect the site to the rest of the city. Opponents and preservation groups urged the city to study designation and other protections before approving demolition or removal of major portions.

GM and Bedrock officials said the complex, built in the 1970s and later modified by GM, must change to survive. Jennifer Stallings, counsel for General Motors, told…