An iconic Corktown building that once provided unemployment insurance to working-class families was designated as a historic district by the City Council.
The Conductors’ Protective Assurance Company building, located on the northwest corner of Michigan Avenue across from the former train station, was recognized for its architectural and cultural value. The neoclassical Flatiron Building was designed by architect Alvin E. Harley and includes carved stonework with a locomotive at its entrance.
The site is currently vacant, boarded and up for sale. The historic designation ensures future owners can’t demolish the building. Dan Austin, a Detroit historian and journalist, said the City Council should consider how patient and thoughtful preservation of historic buildings results in positive recognition for the city.
“People want to be in cities with history and culture,” Austin said during a Feb. 26 committee discussion. “The CPA building deserves local protection regardless of whether speculators are asking too much money for it. I hope this piece of the city’s past will play a role in its future.”
Blake Almstead, president of the Corktown Historical Society, said it’s “a truly important property” partly because it was the first building many saw when exiting the former Michigan Central train depot.
It was built in 1924 to serve as the headquarters of a firm that insured railroad officials, conductors and engineers against the loss of their jobs. A report from the Historic Designation Advisory Board notes that these kinds of banks provided a safe place for working people to save money, unlike commercial banks that catered to business and industry.
“Before companies cared for their workers, this building made sure they took care of workers that lost jobs,” Santiago-Romero said on Tuesday.
“Brother” W. J. Ross founded the CPA, which grew to over 15,000 members by 1922. When it came time for a bigger workspace, Ross hired an apprentice of leading Detroit architects Albert Kahn and George Mason.
Harley had previously built the Henry Clay Hotel, so he’s responsible for two of Detroit’s distinctive flatiron buildings. The CPA’s building scale and architectural quality provided an important visual anchor to the Corktown community, according to the historic district report.
A branch of the Central Saving Bank, affiliated with First National Bank, opened for business on the ground floor. The second floor was occupied by physician Daniel H. McGinnis and dentist William F. West. Floors three through five were occupied by real estate and insurance agents, manufacturers’ brokers, construction companies, and two contractors, with several of the offices vacant.
The Conductors’ Protective Assurance Company remained on the top floor until about 1990, when it moved to West Bloomfield. It was acquired by a California company in 2010 and dissolved in 2012.