Detroit commercial real estate outlook 2023: 5 things to watch

There’s no shortage of large-scale construction efforts underway in and around downtown Detroit, and projects in the ground are expected to continue to make progress, while those on the drawing boards may see new life.

Construction continues at the JL Hudson’s department store site, where the northern building that’s part of the two-building development has been topped out and the skyscraper will keep rising.

In addition, work continues on a high-rise tower being built on the former Joe Louis Arena site — potentially the first of multiple buildings to go on that property. Residential, hotel and office could all be part of the mix.

The Ilitch family’s Olympia Development of Michigan and Stephen Ross’s Related Cos. have revealed an ambitious vision for jumpstarting new development in the District Detroit area, and construction could begin on one of the new buildings next year. The developers are seeking what would likely be hundreds of millions in incentives to pull off the vision, which has a price tag currently of $1.5 billion. This will be one to watch, as the July 2014 vision for the District Detroit did not materialize according to expectations, and projects that did materialize, in some instances, took years longer to start than originally projected.

Those are just a few to keep an eye on—there are plenty of others I haven’t mentioned or that will come out of the woodwork.