City Club

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The Detroit-Leland Hotel is a historic hotel located at 400 Bagley Street in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest continuously operating hotel in downtown Detroit, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The ballroom of the Detroit-Leland has hosted a nightclub, the City Club, since 1983. The hotel is now named The Leland and no longer rents to overnight guests.HistoryIn the early 1920s, Edward A. Loveley and Harry A. Stormfeltz formed the Detroit Properties Corporation, with the purpose of developing Bagley Street outward from Grand Circus Park. The first building constructed was the Michigan Building at Bagley and Clifford, designed by the Chicago firm of Rapp & Rapp. The Michigan Building opened in 1926. The second building project undertaken by the Detroit Properties Corporation was the Detroit-Leland Hotel. Loveley and Stormfeltz again tapped Rapp & Rapp to design the building, and the Cleveland firm of Lundoff-Bicknell as contractors. Construction began in 1926, and the building cost $4.5 million.The Detroit-Leland Hotel (named for Cadillac founder Henry M. Leland) opened its doors in April, 1927. It had 800 air-conditioned hotel rooms, along with a dining room, coffee shop, ball room, and 11 stores at street level.However, by 1929 the ownership was having major financial problems and declared bankruptcy.The hotel remained in bankruptcy until 1936, but kept operating throughout this period. By the 1950s, ownership had changed hands to Robert J. Sterling and his brothers Oliver and Edward. The Sterlings renovated the hotel in 1959/1960, prompted by the opening of Cobo Hall. In 1964 the hotel was again sold, this time to Robert K. and Donald Werbe, who renovated the hotel to have 473 apartments in addition to hotel rooms.