65-618: The Maccabees Building (sometimes called Wayne Tower ) is a historic building located at 5057 Woodward Avenue in Midtown Detroit , Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, and is currently owned by Wayne State University . The building consists of a five-story base which covers the entire site. The nine-story spine sits above this rising to a height of 197 feet (60 m) with ten-story wings buttressing each corner. The building's exterior resembles
130-827: A core area that attracted other public-oriented institutions to the area, including several music schools, the Merrill-Palmer Institute , the Detroit Historical Museum , and the College for Creative Studies . The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History , the Detroit Science Center , and the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit also are located in the Art Center area. The Art Center portion of Midtown also contains substantial residential areas, including
195-585: A downturn for the Midtown area. Newly constructed buildings fell into foreclosure, and many of the formerly well-paid auto workers living in the area were out of work. By the time the recovery from World War II stimulated the economy, industry had relocated to the suburbs, and the area gradually became more residential. During the Great Depression , many of the older mansions were subdivided into apartments, and as demand for housing fell after World War II . In
260-581: A general hospital. In 1882 a new hospital building was constructed on what is now the campus of the DMC. Additional buildings were constructed in 1913 and 1928. Hutzel Women's Hospital, founded in 1868, was Detroit's second hospital. Grace Hospital was founded in 1883, and Children's Hospital was founded three years later. Detroit Receiving was founded in 1915, and moved to its present location in 1980. In 2012, two major construction projects were begun in New Center ,
325-455: A handful of buildings, presumably farm structures, were located in the area. The first east-west street in what is now Brush Park , in the southern section of Midtown, was not opened until 1852. It wasn't until during the Civil War , as the downtown district became more business-oriented, that northern Woodward Avenue began to be developed. Construction turned the area that is now Midtown into
390-429: A new 600 kW transmitter, tripling its effective radiated power and vastly increasing the coverage area of its signal. On January 13, 2017, WTVS re-organized its digital subchannels when it added PBS Kids as a full-time 24/7 subchannel on 56.2, with PBS World moving to 56.4. This was in part of WTVS' larger plan of launching a statewide PBS Kids subchannel network in partnership with other PBS member stations within
455-514: A number of historic districts and neighborhoods. In addition to the buildings within historic districts, there are numerous historically significant structures located within Midtown. Many of these structures are listed on the National Register of Historic Places , and include structures from three multiple property submissions : the University–Cultural Center Multiple Resource Area Phases I and II, and
520-460: A number of the university's academic departments as part of Wayne State's campus. After acquisition, initial reviews of the structure estimated that façade repairs would cost $ 1.95 million; upgrades to the fire alarm and emergency lighting systems, $ 960,000; repairs to utility shaft and exit stairways, $ 405,000; and elevator upgrades, $ 770,000. The entire structure was renovated in 2004 and 2005 with second, third and fourteenth floors equipped to house
585-663: A partnership with WKAR , the PBS station serving Mid-Michigan operated by Michigan State University , in which they will jointly operate a 24-hour children's television service to be carried by both stations. The partnership culminated in the establishment of the Michigan Learning Channel in 2021 which is carried by all six PBS member organizations throughout Michigan. In 2023, Detroit Public Television sold its headquarters in Wixom, Michigan , and temporarily relocated to another site in
650-416: A primarily upscale, quiet residential district, far from the hustle of the city center. Urban development of the area accelerated in 1870, when the population of Detroit was nearly 80,000. Streetcar lines established in the 1860s allowed residents to more conveniently travel from the Midtown area to downtown. The West Canfield Historic District , platted in 1871, was one of the first recorded subdivisions in
715-644: Is bounded by the Chrysler Freeway (I-75) on the east, the Lodge Freeway (M-10) on the west, the Edsel Ford Freeway (I-94) on the north, and the Fisher Freeway (I-75) on the south. The Midtown area is a general mixed-use community area of neighborhoods containing successive waves of development that have transformed the area multiple times since it was first platted. The neighborhoods are dominated by
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#1732851967389780-736: Is home the Detroit Medical Center, the largest private employer in the city of Detroit with more than 12,000 employees. The DMC has more than 2,000 licensed beds and 3,000 affiliated physicians. The DMC is the affiliated clinical research site for medical program at Wayne State University, the nation's fourth largest medical school. On March 19, 2010, Vanguard Health Systems announced plans to invest nearly $ 1.5 B in Detroit Medical Center , including $ 850 M for expansion and renovation, and $ 417 M to retire debts, pending approval of its acquisition. The newspaper Metro Times moved to
845-492: Is recessed in a three-story barrel vault arch which continues into the building to form the lobby ceiling. The central section is topped by a radio broadcast tower. This served as the broadcast tower for WXYZ radio (both WXYZ-AM and WXYZ-FM [now WRIF ]), and television , until the station moved to new facilities in 1959. WGPR radio now occupies transmission facilities on the tower, along with some data transmission equipment for Wayne State University. The height above ground to
910-587: The British Columbia Southern Interior (WTVS is carried in that province despite the existence of KCTS-TV in Seattle , the PBS member station commonly found in that province). WTVS is one of five Detroit television stations available in Canada on cable through Shaw Broadcast Services and on satellite provider Shaw Direct ; it began to be distributed by Cancom (now Shaw Broadcast Services) in 1983 as
975-666: The Cass Farm Multiple Property Submission . These structures include: The area that is now Midtown was first platted after the disastrous 1805 fire in Detroit, when the United States Congress authorized the platting of a new village at Detroit. Land titles were granted to settle remaining uncertainty over the ownership of some parcels, which was in part due to the then fairly recent departure of British colonial forces. During this platting, congress authorized
1040-487: The Chrysler Freeway (I-75) on the east, the Lodge Freeway (M-10) on the west, the Edsel Ford Freeway (I-94) on the north, and the Fisher Freeway (I-75) on the south. The Chrysler followed the course of Hastings Street, the center of African-American life in Detroit at the time. To house displaced residents, the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects were built in the far east of the Midtown area, near
1105-568: The Detroit Institute of Arts , and the Horace H. Rackham Education Memorial Building. The district contains several cultural attractions. The library and art museum were built in the 1920s, heralding a City Beautiful movement in Detroit that aimed to establish the area along Woodward as the cultural center of the city. Wayne State University , then housed in the former Central High School, began offering four-year degrees. These institutions formed
1170-646: The East Ferry Avenue Historic District and scattered late-19th century homes to the east of the Detroit Institute of Art. These neighborhoods have been infilled with townhomes and other residential developments and revitalizations. South of Wayne State University, the North Cass (or Cass Farm ) area contains a substantial number of multi-unit apartment houses, many mixed with earlier single-family homes. This area has been heavily influenced by
1235-501: The Henry Ford Health System started the first phase of a $ 500 million, 300-acre revitalization project, with the construction of a new $ 30 million, 275,000-square-foot, Medical Distribution Center for Cardinal Health, Inc. and Wayne State University started construction on a new $ 93 million, 207,000-square-foot, Integrative Biosciences Center (IBio). As many as 500 researchers and staff will work out of
1300-603: The Maccabees Building in Midtown Detroit . The station's transmitter is located at 8 Mile and Meyers Road in Oak Park (on a tower shared with independent station WMYD , channel 20, and CBS owned-and-operated station WWJ-TV , channel 62). Detroit Public Media partners with the Stanley and Judith Frankel Family Foundation in the management of classical and jazz music station WRCJ-FM (90.9). The station first signed on
1365-829: The Maccabees Building in Midtown. In 2002 the district paid the owner of the Fisher Building $ 24.1 million in so the district could occupy five floors in the building; the Fisher Building in the New Center area now serves as the DPS headquarters. Three K-8 schools, Golightly and Spain in Midtown and Edmonson outside of Midtown, serve portions of Midtown. All residents are zoned to Martin Luther King High School , outside of Midtown. The DPS magnet schools Cass Technical High School and Detroit School of Arts are also in Midtown. Midtown also houses two campuses of
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#17328519673891430-642: The Maccabees Building . When the Maccabees organization vacated the building in 1960, the Detroit Public School System (DPS) purchased it for a headquarters. From 1960 to 2002, it served as the headquarters of Detroit Public Schools. It officially became the School Center Building but the Maccabees name remained visible on the exterior. The Maccabees Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. In 2002, DPS paid
1495-531: The University Prep Schools charter school system: Prior to its closure, Murray-Wright High School served Midtown Detroit. At one point in the first decade of the 21st century a portion of Midtown was served by Dewey PK-8 for elementary school, while a portion was served by Edmonson Elementary. Two separate portions of Midtown were served by Golightly K-8 and Spain PK-8 for elementary school. At one point in
1560-527: The Wayne State University Computer Science Department . On March 25, 2011, Wayne State University and Detroit Public Television announced they would jointly operate a television production studio in the space previously occupied by WXYZ-TV. The studio would reunite the entities who co-produced programs through the late 1970s. The space will be upgraded in phases to install new equipment and provide internships for students in
1625-402: The 1950s, demolition of out-moded houses and businesses began, a practice that extended into the 1980s. Wayne State University also began to have more influence in the area, rehabilitating old buildings and building new ones in the northwestern section of the neighborhood. The current boundaries of Midtown were also delineated when the interstate freeways through Detroit were built, particularly
1690-662: The Arnold E. Frank Building in Midtown in 2017. In 2016, an estimated 20,000 people lived in Midtown Detroit, a 7 percent increase since 2013. The neighborhood has one of the lowest crime rates in city, in part due to its relationship with the Wayne State University Police who patrol the neighborhood in addition to the Detroit Police. From 2008 to 2015, crime decreased 52 percent in Midtown compared to 18 percent in
1755-506: The Chrysler and what once had been the thriving Hastings Street community. As the focus shifted to revitalization in the 1990s, more structures in the area have been refurbished, by Wayne State, other public groups, and by private parties. In September 2005 the company Lovio George Inc., located at Forest and Third in Detroit, revealed a new logo for Midtown Detroit. In 2011, Midtown's apartment buildings were 94% occupied. Midtown Detroit
1820-535: The Fisher freeway, and extends east and west from Woodward Avenue to Beaubien Street. Brush Park was developed beginning in the 1850s as a residential neighborhood for Detroit's elite citizens. Construction peaked in the 1870s and 1880s; one of the last homes built was constructed in 1906 by architect Albert Kahn for his personal use. Early residents of Brush Park included lumber baron David Whitney Jr. , his daughter Grace Whitney Evans, Joseph L. Hudson , founder of
1885-657: The IBio Center. South of Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard, the area of Midtown around Cass Park is at a substantial distance from both the downtown core and the influence of Wayne State. The area around Cass Park proper is anchored by Cass Technical High School and the Detroit Masonic Temple , but the portion near Woodward Avenue and the once-fashionable Park Avenue district are awaiting redevelopment. The Brush Park district proper runs from Mack Avenue to
1950-592: The Main Library in Midtown. The current library facility opened on March 21, 1921. The extension wings of the facility opened on June 23, 1963. WTVS WTVS (channel 56) is a PBS member television station in Detroit, Michigan , United States, owned by Detroit Public Media. Its main studios are located at the Riley Broadcast Center and HD Studios on Clover Court in Wixom , with an additional studio at
2015-611: The University constructing new buildings as well as repurposing older buildings located in the area. As of fall 2015, nearly 30,000 students were enrolled at Wayne State: over 18,000 undergraduate students and over 8,000 graduate students, with the remainder enrolled in professional programs. The Art Center (or Cultural Center) is centered on the Cultural Center Historic District : the Detroit Public Library ,
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2080-614: The addition of other hospitals, such as Detroit Receiving Hospital , the campus of the DMC and its adjacent partner institutions (the Karmanos Cancer Institute and the John D. Dingell Veteran's Administration Hospital Center) now takes up most of the area between Mack Avenue on the south, Warren Avenue on the north, John R. on the west, and Beaubien on the east. Harper Hospital was founded in 1863, receiving its first patients, Civil War soldiers, in 1864. Two years later it opened as
2145-439: The air on October 3, 1955, as the 17th educational station to go on air. WTVS began broadcasting in color in 1968. The studios were originally located at 9345 Lawton in Detroit, along with the studios of WRCJ ; WTVS moved to the former WJBK studio facility in the New Center area of Detroit in 1971. WTVS vacated the facility in the 1990s, and the building would be used for its fixed satellite services until 2009, when it
2210-402: The area. The district features large and expensive lots, and many prominent Detroiters settled on the block. A severe depression slowed development, but it picked up again in the late 1870s. The period from 1880 to 1895 brought a boom in the construction of elegant single-family and duplex homes in the Midtown area. The lots on Woodward were the most expensive and featured the most opulent homes;
2275-530: The area. Midtown's proximity to the automotive plants in the Milwaukee Junction area made it ideal for housing auto workers. During the 1910s and 1920s, larger apartment buildings were constructed in the area, and many remaining single-family homes were converted into boardinghouses. Commercial usage also increased in the area, particularly in automotive-related sectors: showrooms, service stations, and part supply businesses. The Great Depression heralded
2340-447: The area. On April 16, 2024, the broadcaster announced that it had purchased the 234 Piquette Avenue building in Detroit, and would convert it into a new $ 30 million campus expected to open in 2026. Concurrently, the organization announced that it had been renamed Detroit Public Media, and that WTVS would be rebranded as Detroit PBS. In 2005, WTVS declined to air the controversial Postcards from Buster episode "Sugartime!", even after
2405-509: The center of Detroit, and families of means moved out of the stately houses along Woodward and in Brush Park. The construction of Orchestra Hall heralded a City Beautiful movement that turned much of the area into public-oriented space; the idea of turning Midtown into a cultural mecca continued with the construction of the library and the DIA in the 1920s. The rise of the automobile also changed
2470-468: The city overall. Wayne State University is located in Midtown. The College for Creative Studies is also located in Midtown and is one of the top art schools in the country. Additionally, the University of Michigan Detroit Center and Michigan State University Detroit Center are both located in the Midtown district. The area is zoned to Detroit Public Schools . At one time DPS had its headquarters in
2535-427: The cultural center (the Detroit Public Library and the Detroit Institute of Arts ) is located directly on Woodward in the northern part of Midtown. The north part of Midtown west of Woodward Avenue is dominated by Wayne State University, whose campus subsumes nearly the entire northwest portion of Midtown north of Warren Avenue and west of Woodward. Wayne State University's campus covers 203 acres (0.82 km ) in
2600-457: The episode let to it being removed from PBS Kids Go! 's national broadcast schedule. The station's signal is multiplexed : WTVS became the first public broadcaster in the state of Michigan to offer a digital high-definition feed, launching their simulcast on UHF 43 in October 2000 (exact date not yet known). The station shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 56, at noon on April 16, 2009;
2665-448: The eponymous department store, lumber baron Lucien Moore, banker Frederick Butler, and dry goods manufacturer Ransom Gillis. During the 19th century, around 300 homes were built in Brush Park, including 70 Victorian mansions. The neighborhood is currently experiencing restoration of its historic homes; at present, about 80 original structures remain in the area. Brush Park's revival began in the 1990s and has accelerated recently. A number of
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2730-563: The expansion of Wayne State, with some of WSU's campus extending into the northern section of North Cass, and much of the residential housing stock taken up by Wayne students. There are also a number of commercial buildings, particularly along the Cass Corridor just west of Woodward. Many of these support commercial businesses, and an independent retail study by the University Cultural Center Association has shown that
2795-458: The farm passed on to the couple and eventually their son Edmund. Edmund Brush began subdividing the farm in the latter half of the 19th century. Despite the early date of the platting of the Park Lots, development of the area was slow at first, as early 19th century growth in Detroit occurred primarily east and west of Woodward, along Fort Street and Jefferson Avenue . Even into the 1840s, only
2860-574: The first decade of the 21st century a portion of Midtown was served by Dewey PK-8 for middle school, while another section was served by Sherrard PK-8 for middle school; during that time Spain PK-8 served the rest of Midtown. Previously Malcolm X K-8 in Midtown and Burton K-8 outside of Midtown served portions of Midtown. Prior to its 2012 closure, the Detroit Day School for the Deaf was located adjacent to Midtown. Detroit Public Library operates
2925-410: The letter "H" with this clearly evident on the fourth through tenth story floorplans. The high-rise truss tower features Art Deco and Romanesque details which include large arched windows on the ground and second level with rose windows accenting the second floor. Windows on the tenth and fourteenth floor are arched with decorative spandrel panels. The exterior is faced with limestone. The entrance
2990-469: The lots immediately off the main street were soon filled with the homes of Detroit's upper class. School and religious buildings were also constructed in the area. As Detroit grew, the demand for apartment housing also grew; beginning in 1895, the construction in the Cass Farm area began to focus more on small apartment buildings. This was particularly true in the last portion of the district to be developed,
3055-478: The northwestern section of Midtown. Wayne's campus is irregular, and parts extend south of Warren (notably Old Main ) and north of I-94, out of Midtown and into the New Center neighborhood. Additionally, Wayne's athletic facilities are west of the Lodge Freeway. Wayne is one of Michigan's three research institutions and serves over 32,000 students. The first portion of what later became Wayne State University
3120-572: The number of independent retail outlets in Midtown Detroit is increasing. The north Cass section also has a smattering of industrial buildings dating from the automotive heyday of Detroit. Many of these, such as the Willys Overland building, have been or are being converted into residential loft space. The Detroit Medical Center was organized in 1985 as a union among several hospitals: Harper University Hospital , Grace Hospital , Hutzel Women's Hospital , and Children's Hospital of Michigan . With
3185-520: The older mansions have been restored, and more have been stabilized. In addition, new condominiums have been built in the southern part of Brush Park, near the Fisher Freeway. In the far southeastern corner of Midtown, to the east of Beaubien and Brush Park proper, the now-demolished Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects were located near the Chrysler Freeway. Midtown contains within its boundaries
3250-472: The owner of the Fisher Building $ 24.1 million to purchase five floors to house administrative offices, citing the high cost of renovations needed at the Maccabees Building to comply with building and safety codes. That same year, Wayne State University purchased the Maccabees Building for additional space. The building houses administrative offices, communication equipment, retail space, and offices for
3315-435: The platting of land north of Detroit on both sides of the main thoroughfare, Woodward Avenue. These lots were known as the "Park Lots." The section of Midtown to the west of the Park Lots is known as the "Cass Farm" area, after the name of one of the original ribbon farms that ran north from the river through the area. The original Cass Farm ran between what is now Cass Avenue and Third Avenue. In 1816, Lewis Cass purchased
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#17328519673893380-562: The ribbon farm. The property was gradually developed over the years, with the sections closest to the river being developed first. By the time Cass died in 1866, a few of the blocks north of Martin Luther King Boulevard had just been platted. Cass's children continued to plat the area after his death. Two more farms ran through Midtown west of Woodward: the Jones/Crane Farm, named for De Garmo Jones , onetime mayor of Detroit, which
3445-477: The school was renamed Wayne State University. Since the early 1940s, Wayne State University, backed by the City Planning Commission, has shaped the development of the surrounding area through its plan for growth. The availability of urban redevelopment grants beginning in the 1950s became an important funding resource for expansion of the university. The size of the campus has continued to expand, with
3510-490: The section south of Warren between Cass and Third. Here a number of small-scale apartment buildings were constructed around the start of the 20th century. As the city continued to expand, the character of the neighborhood changed. Even before World War I , the congestion along Woodward precipitated a change from upper-class housing to commercial ventures. The rise of the automobile made more distant neighborhoods such as Boston-Edison and Indian Village easily accessible from
3575-503: The show's Boston -based producing station, WGBH , converted it to the status of being specifically shown to individual stations. The decision was made after PBS received a complaint from then-newly appointed Education Secretary Margaret Spellings , who was upset its storyline, in which the main character, Buster Baxter, pays a visit to Hinesburg, Vermont , to learn how maple sugar is made, and interacts with several children who have lesbian parents. The controversy surrounding
3640-479: The state of Michigan, such as Lansing's WKAR-TV and Flint's WCMZ-TV . On March 8, 2017, WTVS announced it would be moving its digital broadcast frequency from UHF Channel 43 to UHF channel 20 (currently occupied by WHNE-LD Channel 14), which was assigned VHF channel 3 as a replacement frequency. WTVS is carried on most cable television providers in Southeast Michigan , Southwestern Ontario and parts of
3705-547: The studios, transmitter, and broadcast tower were used by WDET-FM . During the 1950s, Soupy Sales performed in the lower level studio. In 1960, the Maccabees Insurance Company relocated its headquarters to a new building in the northern suburb of Southfield . In 1986, it built new 251,000-square-foot (23,300 m) office building, once again in Southfield. These newer structures are also sometimes referred to as
3770-708: The switchover occurred after a presentation of the national anthems of Canada (" O Canada ") and the United States (" The Star-Spangled Banner "). WTVS management cited repeated failures of the station's 28-year-old analog transmitter as the reason for ceasing its analog signal on April 16 rather than the June 12 transition date for full-power stations (the analog transmitter had failed seven times between January 1 and April 16 alone). The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 43, using virtual channel 56. On October 12, 2009, WTVS upgraded to
3835-414: The thoroughfare of Woodward Avenue , which runs north and south through the heart of Midtown. This neighborhood was previously known as Cass Corridor and many Detroiters continue to refer to it as such. Woodward Avenue, running north and south through the center of the neighborhood, is primarily inhabited by commercial businesses, public-oriented/cultural institutions, and religious buildings. The heart of
3900-478: The tip of the antenna is 465.9 feet (142.0 m). Construction on the building began in 1926, and completed in 1927. The building was constructed for the fraternal organization Knights of the Maccabees which later established the Royal Maccabees Insurance Company. Surplus space in the building was leased to other businesses, including retail business on the ground floor and office space in
3965-423: The university's media arts programs. Midtown Detroit Midtown Detroit is a commercial and residential district located along the east and west side of Woodward Avenue , north of Downtown Detroit , and south of the New Center area. The area includes several historic districts . In addition, it contains a residential area of some 14,550 people and covers 2.09 sq mi. The community area of neighborhoods
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#17328519673894030-493: The upper floors. One noteworthy tenant was Detroit's radio and television station WXYZ which had its offices and later television studios and broadcast facilities in the Maccabees Building prior to 1959. During that period, the popular radio programs The Lone Ranger , Challenge of the Yukon and The Green Hornet were broadcast from the Maccabees Building radio facilities to listeners throughout North America. From 1959 until 1987,
4095-455: Was located between what is now Third Avenue and the alley east of Fourth Street; and the Forsythe Farm, located between what is now Fourth Street and the Lodge Freeway. To the east of the Park Lots, the ribbon farm running through the midtown area was owned by John Askin , an Irish trader. Askin's daughter Adelaide married Elijah Brush , the scion of the well-known Brush family of Detroit;
4160-738: Was sold to the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit ; it is currently being reconstructed for use as headquarters for the non-profit Midnight Golf Program. Prior to the digital TV switchover, WTVS transmitted its analog signal from a 1,000-foot (305 m) tower located near the intersection of 11 Mile and Inkster Roads in Southfield , along with the analog signal of WMYD (channel 20) and then- CW O&O WKBD-TV (channel 50). Today, only WKBD-TV (now an independent station) and Ion Television affiliate WPXD-TV (channel 31) broadcast from that tower. On January 11, 2016, Detroit Public Television announced
4225-561: Was the Detroit Medical College, which was founded in 1868. The school of education was begun in 1881. In 1896, Old Main was built as Detroit's Central High School. College classes were added in 1913, and these Liberal Arts classes evolved into Detroit Junior College in 1917. The school began offering four-year degrees in 1923 and graduate courses were added in 1930. Three years later, the previously disparate colleges were united under one administration into Wayne University. In 1956,
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