The city, in a public nuisance lawsuit, is asking a judge to order the owner of an intricate and famed building in downtown Detroit to fix multiple property violations.
The Michigan Theatre, which was converted into a parking garage in 1977 and remained one of the city’s gems with its ornate plaster hovering over vehicles, has faced dozens of blight violations between May 2005 and May 2024, according to the lawsuit filed in Wayne County Circuit Court.
Detroit alleges that Dennis Kefallinos, owner of Bagley Acquisition Corp. and the building at 220 Bagley Ave., faced a plethora of violations: 23 for failing to obtain a certificate of compliance; eight for failing to report on the integrity of the exterior walls and roof structure; 20 for sign restrictions; five for neglecting to abate unsafe or unlawful property conditions, and two for neglecting to comply with an emergency notice of imminent danger issued May 30 this year, according to the lawsuit.
Kefallinos could not be immediately reached.
The city asserts that the building has become dangerous to the public, citing emergency corrective orders and affidavits from city building inspectors.
An inspector issued an emergency corrective order on April 11 after receiving public complaints that debris from the outside of the building was falling onto sidewalks. The inspector required the owner provide a report evaluating the structural integrity, provide access to the building for inspectors and provide the certificate of compliance by April 15, but the lawsuit alleges they never complied to the requirements.
A second corrective order was issued May 9 requiring the landlord meet previous demands, along with adding barricades or scaffolding to protect the public from falling debris, maintaining exterior structures and properly barricading all openings. The city claims that as of May 18, the owner did not meet the requirements, other than allowing the city limited inspection and setting up scaffolding.
The city issued a third emergency order on May 17 due to “continued danger to the public and non-compliance” with the prior orders. Inspectors Bobby Isaac and Kendall West provided statements to the court indicating the building was unsafe, in accordance with their inspections.
As a result, Detroit is asking the court to declare the property a public nuisance, require the owner to correct all violations at his expense within various time frames, allow the city to enter the property and abate city code violations if the owner does not comply by a given timeline, hold the owner liable for any abatement costs and close until the city issues a certificate of compliance.
“If the owners do not comply, we will ask the court to declare the building a dangerous public nuisance and that the court order it to be at least partially demolished to protect public safety,” city Corporation Counsel Conrad Mallett said in a statement. “We understand the historic significance of the building and would work with the Historic Preservation Commission. We hope it does not come to that and plans can be devised to save as much of the history as possible while keeping the public safe.”
The defunct theater served as a set in “8 Mile” for Eminem’s freestyle rap scene and brought Arnold Schwarzenegger to unveil Mercedes’ G-class at the 2018 North American International Auto Show underneath the space’s iconic plasterwork.
Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@freepress.com. Follow her: @DanaAfana.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit says Michigan Theatre is a danger; sues owner Dennis Kefallinos
