Historic Detroit Hotel Set For Implosion To Make Way For New Red Wings Arena
DETROIT (WWJ) - A piece of Detroit history is set to come crumbling to the ground on Saturday.
The Park Avenue Hotel, built in the 1920s and abandoned since 2003, will be demolished July 11 at 8 a.m. The 13-story building will be filled with more than 200 pounds of TNT, and is expected to come crashing down in mere seconds.
The hotel is being destroyed in order to build a high-capacity loading bay for the new Detroit Red Wings arena, located on the west side of Woodward Avenue, just north of I-75.
It's part of a $650 million development project to create a 45-acre downtown sports and entertainment district.
Portions of Cass Avenue, Clifford Street, Ledyard Street and Henry Street will be closed from 6 a.m. until an hour after the event. A designated public viewing area for the implosion has not been established.
The 20,000 seat arena is expected to open in September 2017.
