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Last Updated:
Jun 30th, 2009 - 13:40:33 |
Iodent Lofts
Entertainment District
Sean Harrington, owner of Centaur Bar and the Town Pump, is now showing (and has already sold some) 11 residential apartments in the the former Iodent Toothpaste Factory, renovated by the Beresh Group who have transformed the space into the decadent, deco-esque Iodent Lofts. Mirror-walls span from the floors to the ceilings of each loft’s bathroom, and some of the layouts have allowed for large windows through which you can gaze at the city while in the tub, or large showers with overhead showerheads. The kitchens include contemporary fixtures, deep, stainless-steel sinks, drawer dishwashers and frosted-glass cabinets that open like the doors of a Delorean. The black-and-brown swirling factory floors are glossed over and shine like polished opal. These lofts are sleek: deep red pillars jutting from the floor to the ceiling accent the white walls and black glazed floors and give the historic building a modern feel. The units’ main doors are painted black and the vintage silver addresses planted on them scream of the contemporary recreation.
Harrington acquired the building a decade ago and opened Centaur a couple years ago. It’s at the Fox’s back door and within walking distance of Comerica Park, the Fillmore and the Detroit Opera House.
Harrington said he’s excited about the dramatic positive changes happening in Detroit. “Five years ago, you wouldn’t recognize the place. Every five years, we’re so much more advanced,” he said. “The Book Cadillac is a gigantic help … that’s bringing down a lot of people with money,” he said. And attracting the people with money is, for him, perhaps more important than worrying about what to do with the homeless, because attracting more downtown residents is what’s going to make the city thrive. “You can build bars all you want,” Harrington said. “People will drive 50 miles to get to a bar … but you need to have a residential population that’s downtown.” The housing market’s condition has slowed suburban development, but it’s remarkable that “we’re still moving.” Buyers of the Iodent Lofts have been a diverse set, including an older couple, a middle-aged couple, a doctor and a gentleman who’s “sort of involved in politics in the city.”
As to the common lack-of-grocery-stores argument, Harrington said that’s a myth: you can see Zaccaro's Market in mid-town and Eastern Market when you look out his building. ”Living in the city is basically living in a more interesting environment than what you will find living in the suburbs,” Harrington said. “The idea that it’s scary is fiction.” As Harrington noted, when you’re in Novi, you’re surrounded by people like you. Why be surrounded by yourself, and houses that all look the same?
In The Iodent, you’re in a unique space that’s both contemporary and historical, and on the frontier of downtown development ... while suburban development remains stagnant. | RDW
More: iodentlofts.com
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