Detroit's Renaissance Center Keeps Reinventing Itself

Why Does Highland Restaurant No Longer Rotate 360 Degrees?

Sunday, October 9th, 2022 at 2:24 PM
Starbucks
Grosse Pointe, Michigan

I’ve discovered the Renaissance Center again. GM bought the complex, and poured millions into renovations and remodeling. A wintergarden atrium gives the automotive company a place to display new models. The wintergarden also connects the Renaissance center to the riverwalk, a broad promenade along the Detroit River. Soon, from the steps of the center, one will be able to walk anywhere in Detroit as the greenway system develops.

For all the millions of dollars spent on the buildings, the center has the feeling of being a ghost town, a very clean, architecturally interesting ghost town. One statistic says that ten thousand people report to work at the Renaissance Center, but I wonder if that number comes from the time before Covid-19 remote work? I noticed that too much retail space looked all too available for lease.

I love that the People Mover delivers visitors right into the heart of the Renaissance Center. After enjoying lunch in Greektown, I can hop on the People Mover for free and arrive at the Renaissance Center in less than fifteen minutes. On the sidewalk to the east of the main towers, I can catch the Jolly Jefferson 9 and go home in less than a half hour. Using a borrowed computer, I wrote all Saturday afternoon in a well-appointed space. When I needed inspiration, I walked out onto a deck, a windy deck, and admired the turquoise waters of the Detroit River. If I weren’t staring across the waters at Windsor, Ontario,, I might think I was on a beach in Mexico.

The Renaissance Center staggers people with the complexity of its interior space. I visited the RenCen a few times during my life in Detroit fifteen years prior. But now, I even feel lost. On Saturday, I found the elevator up to Highlands, the restaurant on the Seventy-first floor. The signs pointing the way to the central tower helped.

I felt disappointed to learn that the restaurant deck no longer rotates. The restaurant closed Saturday for a very exclusive wedding celebration, so I didn't walk around the circular path, viewing forty miles in all directions. I caught glimpses of Lake Saint Clare to the east. I gazed west, trying to catch a hint of Lake Erie. And then I hit the elevator before the wedding party arrived. I'll need to head upstairs for a drink with a friend soon.

I have two memories of enjoying a circuit of the city from the rotating deck. One night, a friend brought me along on a boating excursion on the Detroit River. Afterward, we went up to the 71st floor. My host, who never let my wine glass go dry, pointed out all the exclusive clubs on the ground. The Detroit Athletic Club? One the board. The Scarab Club? Sponsored an exhibition. The Players? Underwrote a Frolic. The Yacht Clubs? Served at Commodore at two of the most exclusive. Only one club had denied membership, a club that counted among its members the Ford and Briggs family. I slept in a boathouse that night rather than drive home to Southfield.

The second time, I brought my daughter up to the rotating restaurant, most in a desperate attempt to win back her favor, briefly lost that night. We had taken in a children's performance from the balcony of the Fox Theater. I had no problem that the spirited music brought her to her feet to dance, dance, dance. I loved it. When she started playing with the hair of a guest sitting one row before us, I had to intervene. The guest laughed it off, but I had to say something. This upset my child, and I felt sad as she gave me the cold treatment.

So we went to view our great city. While she was awed, I still felt her upset. Luckily, the upset didn't last after a night's sleep. My darling slept all the way back from Detroit, walking drowsily to the door of her home in Waterford.

I've thought about becoming a volunteer tour guide at the Renaissance Center. On Saturday, I noted a well dressed group of friends walking towards 42 Degrees North, a RenCen restaurant with an awesome Detroit River view. I gave the entourage directions to the Highland restaurant elevator. A man shared the elevator down from the third floor of the Marriott Hotel. "Where's Andiamo’s? "Try the Wintergarden, by the Panera. Out the hotel doors and take an escalator down." He thanked me.

I wonder if I should dress in a Tuxedo for a job as a RenCen guide? W

Windsor, Ontario from the GM Renaissance Center