A rendering of a new walkable community with state-of-the-art residential, commercial, retail, recreational, and healthcare center for Detroit’s New Center neighborhood. This Detroit Pistons and Henry Ford Health’s $2.5 billion partnership includes a 10-year plan.
New plans to dramatically upgrade Detroit’s New Center neighborhood are underway as proposed site advancements, to the tune of $2.5 billion, were recently announced to boost opportunities for Detroiters and organizations locally and beyond.
In this multi-billion plan, Billionaire Tom Gores, the Detroit Pistons, Henry Ford Health, and Michigan State University will spend $2.5 billion over the next decade to transform Detroit’s New Center neighborhood into a thriving, walkable community with cutting-edge residential, commercial, retail, recreational, and health care facilities.
The development will be anchored by a newly designed academic healthcare campus for Henry Ford Health, the centerpiece of which will be a significant expansion of Henry Ford Hospital that includes a brand-new facility and patient tower that totals more than one million square feet. The 30-year cooperation between Henry Ford Health and Michigan State University also includes a brand-new, state-of-the-art medical research center for Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences.
The plan calls for a large overhaul of the relationship between Henry Ford Health, Gores, and the Pistons. These parties collaborated on the construction of a $137 million facility in 2019, which allowed the Pistons to return to Detroit and move into the new Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center and Center for Athletic Medicine on Second Avenue next to the New Center.
“When we acquired the Pistons more than a decade ago, our vision was larger than simply owning an NBA basketball franchise,” Gores, owner of the Detroit Pistons and founder of global private equity firm Platinum Equity, said. “I viewed this from the start as a ‘community asset’ that was uniquely positioned to participate in the continuing reinvention of Detroit and to be impactful in the lives of its residents.
“Our plan in Detroit has focused on bringing people and organizations together and creating meaningful
partnerships that accelerate growth, create opportunity and contribute to the revitalization of the city,” he said. “We are uniquely positioned and fortunate to have our partners at Henry Ford Health support the reimagination of our shared neighborhood, which will create jobs and housing for a new generation of Detroiters.”
Riney said the power of partnership is vital in redefining and rebuilding neighborhoods across Detroit.
“The re-imagination of our healthcare campus in Detroit has been a long-held vision for us and we’ve taken exceptional pride in challenging ourselves – a quest to discover what’s truly possible alongside our partners,” Riney said. “We’ve welcomed Tom Gores’ ‘big thinking’ approach since the very start of our partnership.
He’s a great catalyst in stretching people’s expectations and aspirations and has really helped us drive a common mission and vision that will help us create something truly transformative for our patients and families, our communities, as well as the best team in healthcare.”
Riney said the hospital component alone will represent the largest single healthcare investment in the city of Detroit in the health system’s history. Renderings shared during a press conference on Wednesday, February 8 detail the initial conceptual areas of focus for future development in creating a unique destination to live, work and play in a community that supports tomorrow’s healthcare advances, drives economic growth and inclusion, and provides a new welcoming and accessible urban environment.
“Like all major U.S. cities, our great city of Detroit deserves a premier academic medical center and destination for the most advanced care, research, and education,” Riney said. “We know we can deliver on that promise – to double down on our commitment to being relentless advocates for those we serve.”
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan spoke of community and driving economic growth impact.
“Detroit is seeing more investment, construction, and job growth than it has in a half-century and (this) announcement … takes things to a new level,” said Mayor Duggan. “Detroiters will have not only a new state-of-the-art hospital and medical research facility, but also more opportunities to live, work and play, right here in this neighborhood.”
Mary Sheffield, the president of the Detroit City Council and a representative for District 5, spoke on the dynamic partnership impacting the city.
“The vision they share for this new development venture brings great potential for economic opportunities, housing, and other amenities to further connect New Center to the surrounding neighborhoods,” Sheffield said of Henry Ford Health, Gores, and the Pistons’ collaboration.
The partners want to create a walkable, connected community with cutting-edge mixed-income living spaces, retail and dining options, and an arts and culture district in the section of New Center that currently houses the headquarters for Henry Ford Health and the Pistons. This area is south of West Grand Boulevard, north of I-94, east of M10/The Lodge, and west of Second Avenue.
The new building and patient tower will be situated on the south side of West Grand Boulevard, across from the heritage hospital, with intentions to operate on both sides of the street. There will also be technology upgrades. An expanded emergency department with universal rooms and dedicated trauma and behavioral healthcare space, as well as cutting-edge acute and intensive care units, upgraded operating suites, and more, including a new building.
“We have assembled an amazing team of nurses and physicians, patient and family advisors, operational and technology leaders, consumer experience experts, and others to carefully and thoughtfully design every inch of this state-of-the-art facility with well-being at the center,” said Dr. Adnan Munkarah, executive vice president and chief clinical officer, Henry Ford Health.
In addition to the new building, Henry Ford Health plans to integrate and connect its Detroit facilities through a series of tunnels, bridges, and walkways to ensure seamless travel, as well as infuse inviting green space.
With Henry Ford Health’s Board of Directors expected to approve the plan later this month, the health system hopes to break ground in 2024 and will release more details as plans are finalized.
The joint research facility will be located within the proposed development area. A multi-phase, multi-year vision, the plan preserves the neighborhood’s rich history while infusing innovative solutions to address the future of health care in Detroit and extends throughout the West Grand Boulevard corridor and Henry Ford Health and the Detroit Pistons’ New Center footprint.
Plans include:
- Residential development with market-rate and affordable housing, which will include the eventual transformation of the current One Ford Place building
- Publicly accessible retail space and possibly a hotel
- A multi-story parking deck
- Centralized community park and green space areas with outside basketball courts across Amsterdam
Henry Ford Health and the Pistons are in the beginning stages of engaging stakeholders from the community to solicit feedback on the proposed transformative future development vision that will build upon the successful development of the Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center, which opened in 2019.
“Tom and I and our organizations strongly believe in the importance of engaging the communities we serve and look forward to sharing our vision for this transformative development in New Center and forming an inclusive dialogue with our neighbors that promotes collaboration and an exciting outcome for all of us,” Riney said.
Nicole Sherard-Freeman, Nicole Sherard-Freeman, group executive of Jobs, Economy & Detroit at Work, told the Michigan Chronicle after the announcement that this announcement is a big deal for all parties involved and will benefit Detroiters in a major way.
“This is not just because of jobs but also obviously because of the quality of care (that will come online),” Sherard-Freeman said. “This organization cares very much about the community. … I don’t know how you can get a better combination.”
To learn more about the Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences partnership, visit henryfordmsu.org.
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