Plans for electronic music museum in Detroit’s abandoned Packard Automotive Plant proposed by mayor

The site of Detroit’s Packard Automotive Plant may soon become an electronic music museum as part of a $50 million redevelopment plan. 

Located on Motor City’s East Side, the former car plant has sat more or less abandoned since it ceased production in 1958. Designed by Albert Kahn, the site played a key role in the city’s underground music culture in the ’90s, hosting Richie Hawtin’s Spastik warehouse parties and the legendary DJ Godfather vs. Gary Chandler battle. More recently, it has appeared in films like Transformers and It Follows as well as music videos like Eminem’s ‘Beautiful’.

Under the proposed plans, the site would be redeveloped to house the Museum of Detroit Electronic Music (MODEM) as well as multiple affordable housing units, public recreation areas and the city’s first-ever indoor skate park. If approved, the project would create up to 300 jobs, with construction expected to be completed by 2029.

Commenting on the plans, Detroit Mayor Mark Duggan said: “Five years ago, the Packard Plant was still standing as Detroit’s most iconic ruin. It took an incredible amount of work to gain title to the property and tear down everything that could not be saved in hopes for a day like this.”

Incoming mayor Mary Sheffield added: “For more than 60 years, this site sat idle. Today, we declare that those days are over. The Packard Park will be a symbol of what is possible when Detroiters, public partners, and committed developers work together with imagination and purpose.

“This is how we honor our past while building our future — by preserving history, creating jobs, expanding housing, and investing in culture and community all at once.”

Member of the city council Scott Benson added: “This historic site, once a symbol of industrial might, will now see a new life as a much-needed employment center and housing in our city. I am thrilled to see this plan, which also will provide much needed recreational opportunities, community spaces and jobs on the east side of Detroit. We have waited a long time for progress, and this redevelopment plan represents better days ahead for the Packard site.”

Find out more about the proposal here.

In January, a Detroit techno exhibition titled Techno: The Rise Of Detroit’s Machine Music was announced for the Michigan State University Museum. The exhibition featured an original sound installation by Underground Resistance.

In February, J Dilla was honoured with his own street in Detroit as part of the late hip-hop producer’s birthday celebrations.