The Durant facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Hotel Durant
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| Location | 607 E. 2nd Ave. Flint, Michigan |
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| Area | 1.7 acres (0.69 ha) |
| Built | 1919 |
| Architect | Esenwein & Johnson |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 09000128 |
| Added to NRHP | March 17, 2009 |
The Durant is an apartment building found at 607 East 2nd Avenue in Flint, Michigan. It was first built as the Hotel Durant in 1919. This important building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.
Contents
History of The Durant Hotel
Flint's Growing Car Industry
In the early 1900s, the car industry in Flint grew very fast. The city's population jumped from 13,000 people in 1900 to over 90,000 by 1920. Car companies like Buick and Chevrolet were a big part of this growth.
When these companies joined to form General Motors (GM) in 1908, GM became very important to Flint's economy. With so many people coming to Flint for work, there was a big need for more and better hotels.
Building a Grand Hotel
By the late 1910s, a group called the Durant Hotel Company decided to build a new hotel. This company was led by William C. Durant, who was also the chairman of GM. They raised $500,000 to build the hotel.
The company hired the United Hotels Company of America to help build and manage the new hotel. In 1918, the architectural firm of Esenwein & Johnson from Buffalo, New York, was chosen to design the building. Construction started in 1919.
Opening and Success
The hotel was first planned to be six stories tall. But because of the high demand, two more stories were added during construction. The Hotel Durant opened its doors on December 14, 1920, with 264 guest rooms.
Right away, The Durant became the best hotel in Flint. It was the largest and most impressive hotel in the area. Besides hosting visitors, local groups and people used it for meetings and special events.
Changes Over Time
In 1942, the Albert Pick Hotels Company bought the hotel. By the late 1960s, GM's operations in Flint started to slow down. This meant there was less need for such a large hotel. The 1973 oil crisis made things even harder, and the Hotel Durant closed in 1973.
The building stayed empty for many years, and different plans to fix it up didn't work out. In 2005, the Genesee County Land Bank bought it. Then, in 2008, an LLC took over. They started to renovate the old hotel to turn it into apartments. The new apartments opened in 2010 and were completely full by the next year.
What The Durant Looks Like
The Durant is a large, eight-story building designed in the Neo-Georgian style. It has a "U" shape and fits into a unique lot. The building has three main outer walls. The bottom two stories are made of limestone. The top six stories are made of red brick with limestone details. These details include bands of stone on the fourth and eighth floors.
There are two main entrances that lead to the lobby. One is on the south side (the bottom of the "U" shape) and the other is on the west side. The main entrance on the south has two large arched windows next to it. The west side has four similar windows. Shops are located around the rest of the ground floor. The upper floors have identical windows that can be opened from both the top and bottom. The building has a decorative brick and limestone top edge.
