"The deal is complete. The future of the depot is assured. The next steward of the building is the right one for its future. The depot will become a shiny symbol of Detroit's progress and its success," Moroun said in prepared remarks released exclusively to Crain's before the 9 a.m. announcement.

"The Ford Motor Company's Blue Oval will adorn the building."

Moroun's confirmation of the sale comes almost two weeks after Crain's first reported a Moroun real estate entity transferred ownership of the hulking train station on May 23 to a limited liability corporation linked to Ford through a New York law firm that has done legal work for the Dearborn-based automaker.

The Morouns also sold the former Detroit Public Schools book depository building adjacent to the train station to the Ford-linked real estate holding company.

In Ford, Moroun said, Detroit gets one of its iconic automakers to come back to the city.

"I know that the city was looking for a moonshot with Amazon," Moroun told reporters while standing outside the hulking train depot. "But I think we got what's really fitting for our city."

Moroun declined to divulge the sale price of the train depot and book depository building, calling it "a private matter."

Ford is planning an event June 19 at Michigan Central Station to detail its plans for Corktown and the old train station, spokesman Said Deep said Monday. An invitation that went out to journalists Monday morning said Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford Jr. and CEO Jim Hackett would speak at the event.

"It will be a historic day for Detroit, the auto industry and the future of Ford — the start of a new era of innovation and mobility," the invitation said.

Robert Dewaelsche, president of the Southwest Detroit Business Association, said Ford's purchase of the train station, which straddles the area that borders Corktown and Mexicantown, will be "lifechanging" for existing businesses.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime real estate deal that I think is going to have a lasting impact on business activity, on quality of life in the neighborhoods," said Dewaelsche, who attended Moroun's announcement.

The deed transfers followed months of clues that Ford has been laying the groundwork to establish a campus in Corktown — something Moroun alluded to in his remarks Monday.

Matthew Moroun, who as vice chairman has taken over day-to-day operations of his father's businesses, said he first talked with representatives from Ford on Oct. 13. He described the meeting as "the grand development I was looking for."