Lincoln Park gives tour of historic building stock

Historic buildings are less likely to be torn down if more people are aware of and appreciate them. That's part of the thinking behind Lincoln Park's North Fort Street Walking Tour.

Two of the five buildings sponsored on the tour are or were in danger of becoming targets of wrecking balls and building eaters. The Park Theatre was threatened with being razed to make way for a new mixed-used development before the developer switched gears and decided to incorporate the historic structure into his plans. The Mellus Newspapers building is facing a wrecking ball this year to make way for a parking lot.

The three other buildings include the Lincoln Park National Bank Building (1605 Fort Street), the Toleikis Building (at the corner of Fort and Arlington streets) and the Woolworth Building (1770 Fort Street). All of them date from the early 20th Century and represent some of the most dynamic architecture in the surprisingly intact downtown.

"There's really an interesting variety of buildings with a lot of interesting stories to tell," says Leslie Lynch-Wilson, president of the Lincoln Park Preservation Alliance. "There's a lot more there than just some neat, old buildings."

Some of those stories include Bob Seger playing at the Park Theatre and Lincoln Park's newspaper breaking stories out of the Mellus. Others aren't as well known, such as those behind the 3-story Toleikis building and the Spanish Mission-style chosen for the old Woolworth's building.

The tour is being organized by the Lincoln Park Preservation Alliance and is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's National Preservation Month. The theme for this year is "This Place Matters!"

Lincoln Park's North Fort Street Walking Tour is set for 7 p.m. Friday. For information, contact Lynch-Wilson at lalynch@wideopenwest.com or (313) 598-3137.

Source: Leslie Lynch-Wilson, president of the Lincoln Park Preservation Alliance
Writer: Jon Zemke

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Downtown Living, Historic Sites, Wayne County

Lincoln Park gives tour of historic building stock

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