At the intersection of Woodward and Grand River avenues in downtown Detroit sits the Elliott Building. Designed by the Wilson Brothers architecture firm, it was constructed in 1894 for the Elliott’s drygoods store. The six-floor masonry building is 10,000 square feet and located on what was the site of the home of Detroit’s first mayor, General John R. Williams. The building has two visible facades, both dominated by large openings of triple-mulled wood double-hung windows and steel casement/fixed windows. The sixth floor has huge round-arched openings that cap each column of windows moving up from the ground floor. The design was altered in 1931 when the first two floors’ exterior masonry brick was replaced with limestone of modernistic, Greco Deco appointments.

The Kresge Company operated the building as a retail “25 cent to $1” store from the late teens through the 1960s. Different retailers occupied the building for the next 30 years. Ownership changed with little movement to revitalize the building as the downtown went through a major downturn. Finally the building went through a major renovation in 2016 as developer Elliott Building LLC working with Kraemer Design Group architects converted the property with five floors of beautiful apartments, and first floor office/retail space. This project was a Federal Historic Tax Credit project that required local, state, and federal approval.