I headed downtown today to get an idea of what the city has been doing in preparation for the superbowl. It was very grey and getting dark when I took the pictures so they have been edited a bit with iPhoto but the content is still the same.

Picture 1 is the Ren Cen building, GM's headquarters with the logo on the windows. They had a big baseball crashing thru during the all star game last summer.

Picture 2 is on Woodward looking down towards the center of the action. There are tents on all sides of the Compuware building and this will be where the Snowblast will take place.

Picture 3 is looking the other direction on Woodward down towards the State, Fox and Comerica Park. I love the trees and fenced in boxes, a couple years ago this strip of Woodward was a dump full of bums and abandoned buildings.

Picture 4 is Campus Maritus ice skating rink with the big Ford logo in the middle. It was too warm and wet to be out skating today. In the summer they cover the rink with grass and make it a little lounge area with a stage.

Picture 5 is a broader picture and the Ernst & Young is a new building within the last year.

Picture 6 is another look at Woodward and the new storefronts going in. Right now there are empty ones that will probably be used for parties, a few permanant stores and the rest are official superbowl suvenier shops. After this is over, I can see a lot of things moving in making Woodward walkable once again. There were a few high end clothing stores on Woodward and also in the stores below Compuware, not something I was expecting.

There is a high end breakfast restaurant there, it looked pretty cool when I walked by. There is also a new tapas place over by the State called Proof, it was where Sibley Shoes used to be.

I didn't try going over by the stadium since I figured all the roads would be closed but will take more pictures when I go down on Friday during the day. The city is coming along, I can see people coming back down afterwards and more things opening.