Soave Real Estate and Mayor Mike Duggan Mark the Opening of Elton Park, Corktown’s Largest Development in Decades

• Phase 1 of $150M project offers 151 residential units, 11,400 square feet of retail
• Massive development already more than 70% leased in just 8 months

DETROIT – Soave Real Estate Group and Mayor Mike Duggan officially opened the first phase of Elton Park Corktown today. Phase 1 of the $150-million mixed-use development brings 151 residential units across six buildings and 11,400 square feet of retail to the city’s historic Corktown neighborhood. More than 70 percent of the apartments have been leased in just the eight months following the first resident moving into the first completed building.

“What had been for years a sea of parking lots and a large vacant building is now a beautiful new residential anchor and public space in Detroit’s oldest neighborhood,” said Mayor Mike Duggan. “I am deeply grateful to Tony Soave for his continued investment in the growth and revitalization of our city.”

The largest development the neighborhood has seen in decades, the first phase of Elton Park was completed in a little more than two years. It is a massive achievement, consisting of the construction of five ground-up buildings and the renovation of the historic Checker Cab Building, now home to 45 one-bedroom and seven two-bedroom apartments, as well as 2,500 square feet of ground-floor retail.

The other five properties are new construction, which replace what had previously been vacant or parking lots, helping to add to the density of Corktown and creating a walkable, beautiful district within the neighborhood. Soave Real Estate has committed to allocating 20 percent of the residential units as affordable housing.

These new additions to the Corktown neighborhood are:
• The Robertson, a four-story building with 45 one- and two-bedroom units and 3,000 square feet of first-floor retail.
• The Crawford, a five-story structure named after Elton Park’s sister park, featuring 40 one- and two-bedroom apartments and 3,800 square feet of retail on the ground level.
• 2100 and 2120 Trumbull, each home to five apartments of about 1,000 square feet. Each building also features retail space, with 1,150 in 2100 Trumbull and 975 square feet in 2120 Trumbull.
• 8th Street Row, a building consisting of four townhomes that are three stories each. The 8th Street Row homes are the final of the six buildings to be completed and were opened for viewing for the first time during today’s celebration.

The project’s Checker Alley is a centrally located, outdoor gathering space that promotes access from Trumbull Avenue into the heart of Elton Park. The development also includes ample parking to meet the needs of residents, guests and shoppers, as well as amenities such as Rocket Fiber Internet and in-unit laundry facilities, and proximity to grocery stores, coffee shops, fitness centers, bars/restaurants, entertainment and other points of interest.

The development plan grew out of a robust engagement process with business and resident stakeholders in Corktown. Soave committed to this approach from the onset of the development process to ensure that the scale, design and aesthetic of Elton Park reflected the character of the historic neighborhood.

“I am very happy to have worked with the City and our strong team to take this once underdeveloped and underutilized corner of the Corktown community and transform it into a vibrant 24-hour district in this iconic corner of Detroit,” said Anthony Soave, president and CEO of Soave Enterprises. “We are honored to play a role in Detroit’s continued renaissance delivering much-needed housing to this great neighborhood.”

Future phases of Elton Park have the potential to bring an additional 275 to 350 additional residential units and retail to the neighborhood.

The name Elton Park derives from a 19th century park, which was originally located at Elizabeth Street and Fifth Street until the late 1950s, when it was lost to the construction of the Lodge Freeway. It is a nod to the Soave Real Estate Group’s commitment to honoring Corktown’s history and legacy.

Soave has a 55-year history of real estate in Detroit, including serving as an investor in the Lofts at Rivertown on East Jefferson and the Randolph Building in Paradise Valley. Soave Enterprises began investing in Corktown in 1998, when the company purchased the Checker Cab business, and subsequently several parcels of land surrounding the building, totaling 4.5 acres. Until breaking ground on the project, the area primarily provided parking for the neighborhood’s popular restaurants and bars.

Elton Park is a project for Detroit by Detroiters, supported by a notable project consultant team consisting of Detroit-based Roxbury Group, which provided development services; Detroit-based architecture and design firms Hamilton Anderson Associates and Quinn Evans Architects; and Monahan Construction, which served as construction manager.

Continuing that theme, Soave used neighborhood and Detroit-based vendors for today’s opening event, including Corktown’s Ottava Via and McShane’s Pub for catering, and Display Group for event rentals.

Elton Park’s financial supporters also include the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s Michigan Strategic Fund, through which the development received a $6.9 million Community Revitalization Program investment, Comerica Bank and Huntington Bank, which worked together to finance the project, and the City of Detroit, which supported the project with infrastructure improvements in the area.