As part of the larger East Riverfront development plan, many of the dormant warehouse buildings in the district will be redeveloped. The first on the list is the Stone Soap Building; an RFP was released in March. Banyan Investments, whose main work has been in West Village and Islandview, has been named developer for the $27 million project.

Banyan plans to both renovate the building and add on three to six stories on top of the building.

The plan includes 63 new residential units, including condos and rentals, 20 percent of them (13 apartments) reserved for residents making 80 percent of the area median income (about $38,000 a year). 33 rental apartments will be in the renovated original building, built in the early 1900s, and 30 condos will be newly constructed. The building will include one, two and three bedroom units. It will also include a gym, pool, rooftop gardens, storage, and bike stations for residents.

13,000 square feet of retail will include a European style, open market concept with retail, food and beverage space, similar to markets like Denver’s Union Station and Atlanta’s Ponce City Market. The development will also include the city’s first parking carousal within an enclosed space.

In addition to retail and residential, the project also includes a permanent performance space for Shakespeare in Detroit.

The project should break ground in spring 2018 with a completion date in 2020.

Banyan has also worked on the West Village bank building at Kercheval and Van Dyke and they’re currently redeveloping the Saint Charles School in Islandview into condos.