Michigan Central Station reopening: Live from Corktown
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It’s time for the housewarming party at Michigan Central Station.
The historic Detroit train depot’s 6-year makeover is complete, and Ford Motor Co. is marking the occasion with an all-Detroit concert at 8:30 tonight, produced by Eminem, that’s expected to draw thousands to the Corktown landmark.
Follow our live updates from tonight’s festivities. Hit ‘refresh’ on your browser for the latest.
8 p.m.: The preconcert festivities begin
The much-anticipated show began with the Martin Luther King Jr. marching band before the politicians got their turns — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Mayor Mike Duggan spoke before Ford Motor Co. Executive Chair Bill Ford told the crowd about his hopes for the remodeled station.
The kickoff included an ode to the station’s place in Corktown (and Ford roots in Ireland), and the neighboring southwest Detroit neighborhood with fiddlers and a Mariachi band performing to cheers and even dancing in the crowd.
Whitmer told the crowd Michigan Central is a testament to the state’s grit.
But there’s a special group of people at the center of it.
“The best thing about Detroit is Detroiters,” she said.
“Big Gretch out,” she closed to cheers, using her Detroit-given moniker.
Ford was introduced by Duggan, and he quickly took the moment as a chance to thank the skilled workers who put the labor in the change the building.
The building had been a symbol of a broken city, he said.
Now, it speaks to the future.
— Darcie Moran
7:50 p.m.: Winds take their toll
The concert entrance on the west side of the venue was closed about 7:15 p.m. after high winds toppled two tents that were covering the metal detectors at the security checkpoint.
The tents were deemed unsafe.
Visitors wer rerouted to the east entrance.
7:35 p.m.: A message to Detroit from Obama
Former President Barack Obama, who helped rescue the auto industry during the Great Recession, sent greetings on Thursday night.
As concertgoers took their seats, a message from Obama played on a screen that said: “Detroit has long represented the bedrock this country was built on — hard work, responsibility, sacrifice and the desire to look out for one another. This project has done more than just put those values in action — it has cemented them for the world to see.”
— Brian McCollum
7:20 p.m.: Hoping for Eminem, recognizing history
Nine-year-old Zain Salami of Grosse Île is really hoping Eminem will perform, he said sitting on the park grass with his dad munching pizza next to him.
But, he knows the history of the moment too, quickly spouting off that the station has been closed for decades.
“This is history,” his dad, Ali Salami, 41, said, and it makes it special to see it together.
— Darcie Moran
7 p.m.: She’s wearing a piece of the train station
Caitlin Hurley, 36, of Detroit got emotional among the sea of people waiting to enter the grounds of Michigan Central Station.
“Where we’ve come from, where we’re going. Just being a part of it all,” she said.
Around her neck, a necklace with a speckled granite stone — a stone from the old bathroom countertops of Michigan Central Station.
Hurley, a jeweler at Elaine B Jewelry in Ferndale, crafted the necklace herself. It’s among the shop’s line of three different pieces using stones from the train station’s past.
“I’m shaking right now,” she said.
Being there, she said, gives her the feeling of being part of something bigger than herself. Bigger than everyone else there to also witness history.
— Andrea Sahouri
6:45 p.m.: No tickets, but looking forward to the show
Steve Gruszka, 62, of Warren, grew up in Hamtramck and remembers going downtown in the 1980s to the ethnic festivals at Hart Plaza.
“Then about the late ’80s, things slowed down and we didn’t go as much,” he said. “But now it’s fun and nice again and there are good things to do.”
Gruszka is a retired electrician. He’s never been inside the train station. He said over his career, he knew colleagues who had the chance to work inside the building, though he never did.
Gruszka doesn’t have tickets but figures he doesn’t need them.
He brought his own beer, Miller Lite, and set it in the cup holder of a lawn chair he set up on the sidewalk along Rose Street between Vernor Highway and 17th Street.
His view of the stage is blocked by fencing around the parameter of the venue, but he has a great view of the terminal and he’s only about 150 yards from the stage.
“I figure the sound will be pretty good here,” he said.
A bit later, Ashia Shields, 36, of Detroit, cradled her 6-month-old son, ZionAliyon in her arms as she waited for the show to start.
Like many others, she doesn’t have tickets to go inside but wanted to hear the music.
She was sitting outside a dog park near Rose Street and 17th. “We wanted to at least hear the concert,” she said. “It’s just so exciting to see them reopening Michigan Central. I’m glad to see it come to life. Detroit is popping.”
6:25 p.m.: Concertgoers stake out their spots
Minutes after the gates opened to the concert area, fans were already lining up near the stage for their chance to see the show, quickly placing blankets and chairs on the grass as strong winds blew.
Ahead of time, a closed-off section marked with reserved seating signs offered promise of Detroit treats as event staffers placed Detroit Popcorn Co. bags under seats along with other goodies.
— Darcie Moran
6 p.m.: Some sweet employee perks
Ellen Deleston of Detroit works for Ford in manufacturing engineering. On Wednesday, she logged on to her work computer to a good surprise.
“I opened an email and it said, ‘You won’” tickets, she said. “It was a raffle. I’m glad I didn’t pass over that email.”
Delleston, who was eager to see Diana Ross and Big Sean, pushed her husband in a wheelchair from Mexican Village restaurant to the western entrance of the concert on Michigan Avenue at Vernor Highway.
“It looks closer than it is,” she said.
Her husband, Devery, who has a prosthetic leg, was eager to visit the train station for the first time.
“I can’t believe they could make that old building shine again,” he said. “I can’t even believe that it was structurally sound. They had to pump out a million gallons of water.”
Jim Peters of Ann Arbor also is a Ford employee who got his tickets via the company raffle. He and his wife, Amy, drove 40 minutes to southwest Detroit to have dinner before the concert.
“I really want to see the renovation,” he said. “I remember it from the old videos which showed Detroit in not the best light.”
Amy is eager for the concert, especially the chance to see Diana Ross.
“A little classic Motown in a classic building,” she said. “Not a bad way to spend an evening.”
— John Wisely
5:50 p.m.: Watching ‘our city come back to its wholeness’
Lifelong Detroiters Darlene Calloway, 67, and her daughter Algeria Calloway, 40, came to Michigan Central Station’s grand opening to witness the legacy of Detroit.
“I am just glad to be a part of this, to see our city come back to its wholeness,” Darlene Calloway said.
“It means so much to our children. We’re talking about leaving a legacy for them — not of a downtrodden city.”
“Look what we’ve got,” Darlene Calloway continued. “It’s beautiful.”
The Calloway women also came to see legendary Motown artist Diana Ross, who they repeatedly described as “the queen” and “the boss.”
Just two days ago, Darlene Calloway found a copy of the movie “Lady Sings the Blues” starring Ross and bought it on the spot.
“She’s special to us. She is,” she said.
Her daughter agreed.
“It’s beautiful to be a Detroiter,” Algeria Calloway said.
— Andrea Sahouri
5:45 p.m.: Duggan gushes over station renovation, Roosevelt Park, vows safety
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, on site more than three hours before the outdoor concert, greeted visitors as well as membera of the Michigan Central Station team.
“We are in one of the most beautiful parks anywhere in America. Roosevelt Park, the front of the train station, has now eclipsed the Scott Fountain of Belle Isle as the most photographed site in the City of Detroit. And tonight it’s going to be the most watched site,” he told the Free Press.
Duggan said Detroit police were prepared for a safe night downtown on Thursday at the outdoor concert for 20,000 ticketholders, not including people outside the venue.
“Detroit’s got the best police chief in America. He’s now the spokesperson at all the national conferences. The Detroit police will be out here in large numbers,” Duggan told Free Press. “I feel very confident in what we’re doing and I’m confident in the men and women of the Detroit Police Department. We prepare every day. You never know when you get an incident anywhere in America. We’ll be well-prepared. I’m optimistic we’re going to have a very good night. Life is good.”
Duggan added that the significance of the moment can’t be overstated.
“I grew up here. I know what the train station meant. Visitors would come to see us and you’d pick them up at the train station and their first image of Detroit would be spectacular,” he said. “To watch it be abandoned and lose the windows and be covered with graffiti was heartbreaking for everybody like me who looked at it and saw it the way it was. But from my first month in office, I was totally focused on this station being restored and reused. I never could’ve believed it could’ve been restored as spectacularly as Bill Ford and the Ford Motor Company have done.”
Duggan added, “You have to be a longtime Detroiter to understand this, the pain of what was taken away from us, the auto plants moving out, the movie theaters moving out, the restaurants moving out, our neighbors moving out … All of that is turning around. To see this come back, for a lot of people, it’s a night of deep pride.”
At that, the mayor said he was headed out to pick up his wife for the show.
— Darcie Moran
5:35 p.m.: Visitors advised of limited seating inside venue
For Candice Jackson, 35, the concert is a home game.
She lives just west of the train station off Interstate 75.
“It’s about a 5-minute walk,” Jackson said.
She has tickets to the show and brought her son, Carlos, 8, with her.
“I like Fantasia and Diana Ross,” she said. “I like Big Sean, too.”
Jackson said she doesn’t get to see a lot of concerts, so she was eager for this one close to home. She arrived about 5 p.m. “They said doors open around 6 and I wanted to get here early.”
An event staffer started briefing people waiting in line, saying seating is very limited inside and many people will have to stand. Visitors can’t bring in food and drink. Metal detectors are in place about 20 yards beyond the first layer of barricades.
— John Wisely
5:10 p.m.: Holding off on an exam to snag a ticket
Once Tanner Langdon, 16, of Madison Heights heard the music lineup for Michigan Central’s grand opening, there was no way he was missing out on the action.
“I had to go,” he said.
On the day of the concert, Langdon heard that extra tickets were set to drop at 10 a.m., the same time as his 10th-grade honors history exam at Lamphere High School.
Thankfully, his teacher held off for 10 minutes.
“He was totally down for it,” Langdon said. “I got ’em.”
Jack White is the big draw, he said. But if Stevie Wonder shows up, “I might actually pass out.”
— Andrea Sahouri
5 p.m.: ‘I love when they don’t tear down buildings’
Michigan Central Station is blocked off with black sheeting at street level, preventing unticketed eventgoers from watching the show.
The campus was empty Thursday afternoon as guests slowly made their way to Michigan Avenue and 14th Street just before 5 p.m., while some popped into Mercury Bar, Grandma Bobs and other nearby restaurants fueling up ahead of the big event.
A local Detroit artist who goes by the name Benzo Bee, 28, was lucky to get his hands on tickets the night before the event. In a group chat, one of his friends asked if anyone wanted a ticket. Bee couldn’t miss the rare opportunity.
“I love everything about Detroit and I love when they don’t tear down buildings that we reuse and repurpose them,” Bee said.
“it means a lot to me now especially because I am a photographer now, so it’s really cool just to just be part of these historic things because I think my favorite thing about photography … is you take a piece of time and you get to capture it for a little bit and you get to hold it for future generations. So there’s gonna be 1000s of cameras in there just shooting and just seeing all this stuff.”
Bee is also stoked to see Diana Ross perform.
“It says everything about Detroit, its elegance, its chicness, its grit and … like the responsibility that we have for this city and just doing everything possible to keep it alive and keep it great,” Bee said. “This event is going to definitely be historic, and I can’t wait to enjoy it.”
— Dana Afana
4:45 p.m.: Lines starting to form
People are standing around waiting to be let in.
It’s hot on the pavement, about 80 degrees. But the passing clouds and stiff breeze make it feel cooler.
Joan Smolarek, 66, grew up in Hamtramck and now lives in Naples, Florida. She is in town visiting family.
“I heard it was happening and wanted to see it,” she said. “We had dinner at Mexican Village (restaurant) and walked over from there.”
Smolarek said she doesn’t have a ticket to the show but hopes to enjoy the music from outside.
“I’ve never been inside” the train station, she said.
She’s planning another family visit in September and hopes to take a tour then.
— John Wisely
4:30 p.m.: Waiting for the event and remembering the station
Michigan Avenue was mostly quiet leading up to 4:30 p.m.
Groups of security personnel in royal blue golf shirts and event staffers wearing black Carhartt T-shirts milled about.
Mercury Burgers and Bar at Michigan Avenue and 14th Street was full. So was the bench outside. The bar even set up an outdoor serving station.
Beer and wine are $5 apiece. Watermelon vodka is going for $12.
They’re also selling hot dogs, lemonade and Faygo pop.
On a bench outside, Tracey Wyatt, 58, of Detroit, was sitting with her 85-year-old mother, Shirley Wyatt.
Their family moved here from Nashville after her father took a job working for Chrysler. He arrived first and they came later.
“I was brought here on a train by my parents in 1966,” Tracey Wyatt said.
She was not quite 2 then, and she doesn’t remember the train ride, but her mother does.
“I remember there were a lot of people there,” she said. “My husband was waiting for us. I haven’t been here since then. To see it reopen is historic.”
— John Wisely
Michigan Central concert details
- Who: Diana Ross, Jack White, Big Sean, The Clark Sisters, Kierra Sheard, Slum Village, Detroit Symphony Orchestra and more. Here’s the full list of artists.
- When: 8:30 tonight. The concert will last 90 minutes.
- Where: Michigan Central Station, Corktown, Detroit.
- TV: WDIV Channel 4 in Detroit.
- Streaming: Peacock.
—Detroit Free Press Staff
How the Michigan Central concert happened
Planning for Michigan Central Station’s concert spectacular kicked into high gear six months ago. But you could say it was really decades in the making.
Assembling a host of top Detroit talent from across genres, the Thursday show will thread together the diverse strands from the city’s musical legacy — summoning a rich history for a night that ultimately is about looking forward. Here’s more.
—Brian McCollum
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