Before Michigan Central Station, Ford Employees Called This Detroit Landmark Home

Just over a year ago, Ford expanded its footprint in downtown Detroit with the opening of Michigan Central Station, but that wasn’t the first time that Ford employees took up residence in a massive city landmark. Fifty years ago this summer, Ford celebrated the development of Detroit’s Renaissance Center with a “topping out" ceremony for the first of four 39-story office towers Ford employees would call home until the late 1990s.

Ford’s involvement stemmed from former Ford Chairman Henry Ford II, who led a group of corporate partners in the massive multiyear redevelopment of the run-down riverfront property. The first phase of the project was completed in 1977, bringing more than two million square feet of office space to the city. Ford Division employees would occupy some of that space in the following year, with several hundred additional Ford employees following shortly thereafter.

A legacy of renewal 

Similar to the restoration of Michigan Central Station decades later, the Renaissance Center project was intended to help revitalize downtown Detroit by attracting new businesses and the additional employment they would bring. The 51-member Renaissance Center Partnership, to which Ford Motor Company belonged through a subsidiary, funded the project. At the time, it was the world’s largest private investment group ever assembled for a major real estate development. 

The 28-acre riverfront location was one of 30 downtown locations evaluated for the project. Prior to the development, the site of the Renaissance Center had been occupied by run-down buildings and warehouses, as well as a rail yard. Construction began in 1973, and nearly 40,000 tons of steel were used in the construction of the privately financed $350 million (a reported $1.8 billion valuation in 2025 when adjusted for inflation) project. 

It was designed by renowned architect John Portman, who had a portfolio of transformational downtown properties, particularly in Atlanta. His approach to the design of the Renaissance Center incorporated “coordinated urban units” created by closely connected, vertically rising buildings.

In addition to office space, the towers housed a 70-story hotel, which stands as Michigan’s tallest building at 740 feet. Upon its opening, it featured 1,400 guest rooms, as well as restaurants and ballrooms, which were booked for events and guest stays many years in advance.  

Ford employees called the Renaissance Center home until late 1996, when General Motors purchased the building from then-owner Highgate Hotels for its global headquarters. A longtime tenant of the building, Ford vacated its leased space shortly thereafter, and about 2,500 marketing and sales employees were relocated to Dearborn. 

Ford Motor Company has an extensive legacy of commitment to the City of Detroit, highlighted by the redevelopment of key sites in the city. Our accomplishments with these two landmark projects reflect a drive for excellence, an ability for large-scale collaboration, and a commitment to creating a positive impact far beyond the products we sell. 

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