DETROIT – Officials with the city of Detroit have walked back its emergency demolition order for the partially collapsed building in Eastern Market.
The partial collapse happened just before noon, Sept. 16. One person was injured and several businesses have closed.
The city ordered an emergency demolition and said the Del Bene building posed “a direct life safety threat to the public.”
The demolition order drew controversy, with many believing the city moved too quickly with the decision to demolish the 130-year-old structure.
The owner of the building filed an appeal on Thursday, Sept. 21, which placed the demolition on hold. He then presented a plan to city officials regarding how to stabilize the building in order to repair and preserve it.
On Friday, Sept. 22, the Detroit Buildings, Safety, Engineering, and Environmental Department announced that they had accepted the plan.
The department released the following statement:
“The owner’s engineer has submitted a document stating the building is safe to enter, stabilize, assess, and repair. We have reviewed and accepted it. The owner has also agreed to a reasonable timeline to begin stabilization, apply for permits, and begin repairs. We agree that the appeal hearing should be adjourned for now and we look forward to working with them to get this building back online as quickly as possible.”
Detroit Buildings, Safety, Engineering, and Environmental Department director David Bell.