Asia Awaits: Urban Detroit Photography Tour

Whilst visiting Detroit, I found a great tour that visited a number of abandoned buildings from the recent economic downturn that has greatly effected the financial state of Detroit. It was primarily for photography, but was also a very interesting morning seeing the 'other' side of Detroit.

Our first visit was to Hutchins School, which closed to students in 2011, when it was locked up, awaiting sale, but was sadly never bought. The police attempted to keep the property secure, but even with the police presence, the scrappers managed to gain access and then takeover the buildings. The damage shown in the below photos is only 3 years old. It was incredibly sad to see such a grand and beautiful building be destroyed and 'picked apart' to such a huge extent. The scrappers take all metal and electrics, fittings, wiring and, if they can manage it, marble. There is still hope that the building will be purchased as part of a greater group of abandoned buildings to be converted into loft style apartments. Lets hope that happens.

Next stop was the Southwest Hospital which was abandoned in 1996. Prior to it being abandoned the hospital had actually been taken over by a property developer, and was to be cleaned up to make it more presentable to the city. Remove the graffiti and make it a viable option for purchasing. Unfortunately, that didn't happen and the building has been left for the scrappers to take over. As we walked through I came across a lone scruffy looking man wandering the halls, it was quite the shock for me (and him). The most unsettling part of the hospital was seeing medical records and personal cheques strewn throughout the halls. It was unbelievable to think that people just shut the doors and walked away. IT was obvious that it was used for squatting at times, but only when the weather permitted.

After the hospital we visited the Hill of Calvary Baptist Church. This church has not been abandoned for very long but is now attracting couples to have their wedding photos taken there - a bit strange! We found it odd that there was so much beautiful timber in the church that could have been up-cycled but it doesn't have any street value, therefore is just left to be damaged by the weather. I was surprised to find a church abandoned, as I assumed the parishioners of the church would have done everything to stop this tragedy occurring. However, we where informed that the main reason that didn't occur, was the parishioners of this church were not in the immediate vicinity, and therefore were not able to keep a watchful eye to stop the scrappers.

Our final stop was the Fisher Body Plant 21 abandoned factory. This factory was started by the Fisher brothers and originally made car bodies for Buick and Cadillac. It closed as a car body factory in late 1974 and was used by a handful of other companies after that up to the late 90's. It has lay dormant since then and the damage internally is intense. There has been interest from a German nightclub owner to convert the building into a fancy nightclub complex but nothing has been confirmed as yet. The building is in a very bad state with asbestos, graffiti and lots of calcium deposits dripping from the ceilings. The bottom floor has a large area that kids have turned in to a skate park and is often used in urban photo shoots.

This tour was a great way to experience a different side of Detroit - albeit a sadder side. Lets hope that Detroit once again becomes the great city it used to be.