Mexican Media Brands
Ford Details Plans to Refurbish Detroit Train Station
Ford Motor Co. says the centerpiece for its new advanced-mobility campus in Detroit’s historic Corktown district will be the former Michigan Central train station.
#workforcedevelopment
Share
Ford Motor Co. says the centerpiece for its new advanced-mobility campus in Detroit’s historic Corktown district will be the former Michigan Central train station.
The carmaker has acquired the 18-story, 500,000 sq-ft building along with a nearby former public school book depository, a former brass factory and two acres of vacant land. Last month Ford opened a 45,000 sq-ft headquarters for its electric vehicle and autonomous vehicle group in a refurbished factory in Corktown.
The Corktown campus Ford is creating will include 1.2 million sq ft of space for 2,500 company employees and as many more who work for partner companies by 2022. Another 300,000 sq ft will provide residential housing, retail and community space. Ford has not announced a cost for the giant project.
Ford Chairman Bill Ford describes the Corktown development as an information age equivalent to the industrial age’s sprawling Ford Rouge complex 10 miles away.
The train station, which closed 30 years ago, had become a looming symbol of Detroit’s decline. Ford plans to spend about four years completely refurbishing the depot, other structures and connected areas. Click HERE for a video of the carmaker’s vision for the project.
Ford predicts the Corktown campus will attract talent and startups and serve as a real-world incubator for all manner of innovations in transportation. CEO Jim Hackett says the project eventually will anchor one end of a 40-mile-long southeast Michigan “mobility corridor” that runs between Detroit and Ann Arbor and through Ford’s world headquarters campus in Dearborn.
RELATED CONTENT
-
on Plenty of Things about Volkswagen & Other Topics, Too
On VW’s Project Trinity, transformation of product development and the interior of the ID.Buzz; new buses of interest; carbon fiber for wheels and accessories (non-automotive); and Aston Martin’s EV battery
-
On a Baby Bugatti EV, a Hybrid Boat and the Future of Works
On the diminutive electric Bugatti you didn’t know you wanted; interesting predictions about apps, electrification and data; a Scandinavian hybrid tourist boat development; the VW Arteon sedan; and employment considerations in car plants as a result of electrification
-
8 Rules for Getting Things Done Through People
Effective management is a timeless skill—as demonstrated by this treasure of an article from the AutoBeat Group archive. Although the tools of the trade have changed and proliferated, the basics remain the same. Here are 8 old school (and just darn practical) rules for being an excellent manager.