Detroit’s skyline tells a story. The Renaissance Center, towering over the city, was meant to symbolize rebirth, a bold statement about Detroit’s economic future. But for many Black Detroiters, it has long felt like a symbol of exclusion—a gleaming fortress disconnected from the communities that needed real investment. Now, Councilmember At-Large Mary Waters is demanding a shift in that narrative. She wants former Mayor Coleman A. Young’s name permanently attached to the site, ensuring that the history of Detroit’s first Black mayor is recognized in the very development he championed nearly fifty years ago.
Waters sent a memo to Jared Fleisher, vice president of the Rock Family of Companies, urging him to honor Young’s contributions. “Our community feels a strong connection to the legacy of the late, great mayor,” she wrote. She is pushing for his name to be incorporated into the redevelopment, making sure future generations understand the role Young played in shaping the Detroit they inherit.
The Renaissance Center was Young’s answer to a city fighting for survival. As white flight drained Detroit’s tax base and businesses moved to the suburbs, he fought to bring investment back. He backed the Renaissance Center as a way to revitalize downtown, but what was meant to be an economic catalyst became an isolated corporate hub. For years, Black Detroiters looked at the RenCen and saw something that wasn’t built for them. Waters, who recently voted against a historic review of the site, didn’t mince words: it “hasn’t meant much to Black people.”
The Detroit City Council rejected a request to make the Renaissance Center a historic district amid talks of redevelopment plans. Since reports about transforming the RenCen surfaced—including proposals that include demolishing portions of the tower campus—residents, preservationists, and public officials have begun to act to preserve the structures. That included a letter from preservationists urging the city to consider adapting the existing buildings, and several residents stunned by the potential loss of a portion of their iconic skyline, asking the council to consider a historic designation study. This study would allow the Historic District Commission to review permit applications for any work within a proposed historic district for one year.
On the other side are stakeholders and supportive residents who view any future plans for the RenCen—even demolishing portions or all of it—as a viable path to create jobs, opportunities, and a flourishing riverfront. During council session, members overwhelmingly voted 8-1 to deny the historic review, with Council Member Angela Whitfield-Calloway being the lone vote supporting it, making room for Dan Gilbert’s Bedrock team to proceed with its proposal to conceptualize a different future for one of Detroit’s most iconic buildings.
“I don’t think we have to demolish to build. I really don’t. I think we can preserve and build at the same time. I think they can coexist. And I’ve watched with a broken heart, all of our buildings be demolished, and then what’s being built now downtown are Lego-style buildings. They don’t have any kind of architectural flavor or design. They are all cookie-cutter designs,” Calloway said. “We are destroying our history… That skyline will be forever destroyed” if the city allows the developer to move forward.
During a planning and economic development committee meeting where stakeholders outlined the proposal and addressed questions, Fleisher said demolishing two towers and maintaining the rest of the properties is the “only viable path to preserving the Renaissance Center.” “Just because something can’t be the same, doesn’t mean it can’t be spectacular, and our vision is to make this and to make the riverfront spectacular,” Fleisher said. “It should be something that Detroiters cannot just see as a stale icon from afar, but can actually experience and enjoy directly. It should be something that is inclusive, not designed to exclude; that is open, inviting, accessible, and easy to navigate. It should be something that connects and integrates the rest of the city with its riverfront, doesn’t divide it. It should be something that anchors a thriving riverfront that is not just based on Navy Pier in Chicago, but that is the envy of Navy Pier in Chicago.”
Fleisher believes Detroit’s riverfront has the potential to become a major gathering place for residents and visitors alike. At a Detroit Downtown Partnership Spring Forum, he emphasized that the current design of the Renaissance Center creates too many barriers to accessing the riverfront. According to Fleisher, the redevelopment project would break down these barriers, making the riverfront a more welcoming and interactive space.
“It is too much work to get to our riverfront,” Fleisher said. “With updates and the reimagining of the towers at the RenCen, it would create a clear and accessible path to the riverfront for all to enjoy.”
The push to add Young’s name to the site comes as Rock Family of Companies and General Motors work to transform the Renaissance Center into an entertainment district with affordable housing, retail, and a public promenade. As part of that redevelopment, two of the five towers—300 and 400—are slated for demolition. Waters is advocating for Tower 300 to be preserved, calling for a balance between progress and historical integrity.
Young was more than Detroit’s first Black mayor. He was a fighter, unapologetically committed to Black empowerment. He took on racist policing, expanded Black political power, and made sure that the people who built Detroit had a say in its future. He stood in the way of corporate greed, knowing that true progress meant investment in Detroit’s communities, not just its skyline.
This is bigger than a name change. It is about ownership of history. It is about recognizing that Detroit’s Black residents have been the backbone of the city’s survival, and that leaders like Young fought battles that still shape Detroit today. The Renaissance Center was part of his vision, even if it didn’t fully deliver on its promise. That history deserves acknowledgment.
Waters’ proposal forces Detroit’s developers and power brokers to confront that truth. Rock Family of Companies and GM have a choice: they can build another project that prioritizes profit over people, or they can ensure that this transformation includes the recognition of a leader who fought for this city when others walked away.
Detroit’s revitalization cannot come at the expense of its history. It cannot erase the struggles that made this city what it is. The Renaissance Center’s future is being decided now, and the question is clear—will this development honor the people of Detroit, or just reshape the city for those with money to spend? If Coleman Young’s name is going to be attached to this project, it cannot be symbolic. It has to mean something. It has to stand for the city he fought for—a Detroit that works for everyone.
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