Royal Oak's Fresard clock tower comes down; Center Street garage site open for ideas
Crews began taking down the 44-foot tower at Woodward and W. Harrison eight years after the City Commission first ordered it removed. Downtown, developer proposals for the former Center Street garage site are due in December.
By OCJ Staff
A Woodward Avenue landmark in Royal Oak is coming down, eight years after the City Commission first voted to remove it.
Demolition of the former Fresard clock tower at Woodward and W. Harrison is underway and is expected to take several days, the Oakland County Times reported Oct. 13.
A $74,426 job
Salenbien Trucking & Excavating of Dundee won the demolition contract with a low bid of $74,426, against an $85,000 Community Development Block Grant budget. The contract was on the commission's June 22 consent agenda, according to the Times.
After the tower is removed, the city plans to restore the site and plant grass. No future use has been planned.
How it got here
According to the Oakland County Times:
- 1999: The 44-foot tower was built under an agreement between the city and Fresard Investment Limited Partnership. It stood partly in the public right-of-way on W. Harrison.
- 2016: A proposal to vacate that part of W. Harrison, which would have made the land private, failed to win commission approval.
- March 2018: The commission unanimously directed staff to tell Fresard the tower had to come down. A certified letter was sent, but nothing happened.
- 2022: The neighboring property was lost to tax foreclosure and transferred to the city, giving Royal Oak control of the tower.
- 2023: Commissioners turned down a recommendation to use block grant money for demolition.
- 2026: A public safety complaint cited a dislodged metal frame and precast masonry panels. The commission then chose demolition over rehabilitation.
Center Street garage site
A few blocks away, demolition of the 1972 Center Street parking garage at Center and Third streets began in late September and is expected to be finished by November, WXYZ reported Oct. 12.
City officials decided the garage had reached the end of its useful life. Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Isaac Kremer told WXYZ it had safety issues and would cost more to repair than to tear down.
The city is taking developer proposals for the 1.44-acre site until December. Ideas mentioned include housing, a new parking structure, retail and a boutique hotel. The city's master plan also calls for extending Third Street through the property.
A public process will follow before any construction begins, according to WXYZ. Kremer called the site a "catalyst" that could shape downtown for the next 50 years.
This story uses reporting from the Oakland County Times and WXYZ.