A three-story office building in Detroit’s central business district located across W. Congress Street from Cobo Center will be up for auction Sept. 25 to Sept. 27. The white terra cotta and brick building was appraised for $5 million earlier this year, and the starting bid is $1.2 million.

Built in 1950, the 26,666-square-foot building at W. 610 Congress was renovated in 2015 and includes upgraded mechanical systems (electrical, plumbing, fire suppression, and HVAC) and new security and alarm systems. The structure offers open floor plans with executive offices and private conference rooms.

The Class B office building includes an adjacent 23-space parking lot. The nearly one-half-acre property has a classification allowing for B-5 zoning, meaning the site could be developed into a hotel.

In addition to the main building, which fronts W. Congress, a two-level adjacent building was added. The two contiguous buildings were previously occupied by RR Donnelley and the Detroit Legal News. Currently, the adjoining buildings are unoccupied, save for space being used by the ownership group.

“We received quite a few offers to sell the property in recent years with all that is happening in downtown Detroit and Corktown,” says Patrick Rugiero, co-owner of 610 W. Congress. “With all of the attention the building is getting, we thought the best thing to do was to put it up for auction. This is not a distress auction, it is a real auction.

“In addition to being in the central business district, and having very close freeway access, the building is close to Corktown. With Ford Motor Co.’s announcement (in June) of buying the Michigan Central Station and other neighboring parcels for an R&D mobility campus, the building is ideally located to complement those activities.”

The auction by Ten-X Commercial requires a $10,000 participation deposit. For more information, contact Steven Silverman at Friedman Real Estate at 248-848-4089 or steven.silverman@freg.com.