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After weeks of speculation and rumors, the Ford Motor Company announced its
purchase and plan to invest over $1 billion into the Michigan
Central rail depot in Detroit's historic Corktown neighborhood.
Made public 115 years to the day after Henry Ford signed the
company's articles of association, Ford plans the investment to
mark a new chapter for the company, the city, and – most
importantly – the future of transportation.
The massive 18-story Beaux-Arts structure sat empty since the
last train's departure in January of 1988. Financed by the
Vanderbilt railroad empire and once the point of arrival for
luminaries ranging from Franklin
Roosevelt to Harry Houdini, the station has in recent decades
been a target for looters, 'ruin porn' photographers, and
urban explorers hoping to catch a glimpse of Detroit's former
opulence and subsequent socioeconomic difficulties.
In addition to the purchase of the station itself, the
investment follows Ford's systematic
acquisition of the former Detroit Public Schools Book
Depository, two acres of vacant land, the site of an old brass
factory, and the recent purchase of a refurbished former pantyhose
factory in Corktown – now home to Ford's electric and
autonomous vehicle business teams.
From a local standpoint, Ford's investment in its hometown
is good news. It has been lauded by Detroit leaders and
businesspeople such as Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert as
"phenomenal", and Mayor Mike
Duggan praised the Dearborn-based automaker's efforts to
invest in urban centers as well as their traditional suburban
developments.
Closer inspection of Ford strategy in recent months indicates
growing and aggressive global market ambitions in addition to this
hometown pride. Ford wants to once again rewrite the transportation
playbook, and appears to be positioning itself to act as the market
disruptor it proved itself to be with the Model T, Rouge River
Plant, and Whiz Kids management science pioneers of the
20th Century. This time, in addition to taking on
railroads and other automakers, the Blue Oval of the
21st Century appears ready to go toe-to-toe with Silicon
Valley from its new development in Detroit.
Evidencing this outlook is a keynote
address given by Ford President and CEO Jim Hackett at the CES
Conference in Las Vegas earlier this year. In his statement Mr.
Hackett spoke of the freedoms, and challenges, that the automobile
has spawned. He stressed that roads and urban centers – the
original shared resource for most communities – have thus far
been largely left out of discussions in a new era of sharing
economies. In addition to emphasizing the importance of autonomous
vehicle development, Hackett also stressed the need to effectively
leverage artificial intelligence, big data, and civil collaboration
to take a user-centered approach to the redesign of transportation
technologies.
With these sentiments in mind, the Michigan Central acquisitions
fits squarely within aggressive goal-setting strategies for the
future of transportation at Ford. After the restoration of the
station and surrounding campus, expected to take four years,
Michigan Central will become the focal point for Ford's
autonomous and electric vehicle testing center with upwards of
5,000 employees working in Corktown. In addition, civil
collaboration will be supported with over 300,000 square feet
pledged to mixed use retail space. The hope is for the station to
be a meeting spot and center of urban activity similar to San
Francisco's Ferry Building as well as a springboard for the
Midwest's growing venture capital and research corridor
activities. Some are even calling for trains to
return to Michigan Central as a way to expose travelers to
Ford's future mobility technologies.
Though questions remain, the ambitions of the Ford Motor Company
are unquestionably clear. With its investment in Corktown, Ford is
seeking to solidify the message that Detroit is open for business
and that it wants to use its Midwest foothold to lead the industry
in changing how people think about, and invest in, transportation.
Jim
Hackett struck this point home most clearly when he recently
stated the case for Detroit's continued leadership in
transportation technologies. "Palo Alto is about moving bits.
We're about moving people," said Hackett during a press
conference in front Michigan Central three days after the
announcement. "This can be our Sand Hill Road."
Please note Foley Summer Associate, Ken Johnson was a
contributing author of this post. The Dashboard Insights team
thanks him for his contributions.
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