Old Chrysler Australia building being demolished.

[crv]

The old Chrysler factory at Keswick, South Australia, is making way for a Kaufland supermarket.
The site was previously owned by furniture company LeCornu, now defunct, they had added the facade seen in some images.

 

[1978 NYB]

Dang! I hate seeing old historic buildings torn down!

 

[LeBaron1973]

That was the old TJ Richards plant, that company being purchased by Chrysler.

History disappearing at a rapid rate , the Tonsley Park assembly plant long gone now, only the office building remains.

What's happening with the Holden site at Elizabeth?

 

[crv]

The Holden's plant is still untouched, supposedly going to be turned into an industrial site housing a number of businesses.
Some of the old factory buildings at Tonsley Park are still there, they held the SA All Chrysler Day there a couple of years ago.
And yes, the Keswick site dates back nearly 100 years. All in the name of progress, like many old houses close to the CBD are being demolished for apartment buildings or subdivision. A 300 square metre block is now selling for $350,000 or more, depending on location.

 

[LeBaron1973]

One day when developers have paved over everything they'll realize you can't eat money. Will be in Adelaide from the 29th until September 2nd, probably lots of changes.

 

[CBODY67]

Thanks for the pictures! The bad part about these older industrial complexes is that they were purpose-built and can't easily be adapted to modern uses. Plus other things like updating them to current building codes and such can be very expensive. Unfortunately, more cost-effective to remove them and start over, many times.

Michigan is "littered" with some older car plants/complexes that have been abandoned and fell into serious dis-repair. As evidenced by articles on the Packard Plant (www.macsmotorcitygarage.com). LOTS of concrete in those older structures! Many pillars to get in the way of any future uses/reconfigurations, it appears.

Still, though, hate to see these prior-significant structures go away . . . just because they can.

CBODY67

 

[amazinblue82]

A decade ago i was part of a "syndicate" to buy the Packard Complex. We lowballed the deal and never got a second look.

Packard Automotive Plant - Wikipedia

Not gonna take us back down the Ruin **** route (been there on FCBO a few years back), but this complex was symbolic of the decline of the car industry and Detroit in particular

Turns out, we (the syndicate) didnt have the 'nads to do the project we wanted HAD we won it. We underestimated the rehab by a factor of 4, and the demolish option by a factor of 8 (mainly to remediate 100 years of chemical contamination) .

Still not sure what's gonna happen on the site .. lost track of it after a South American dude bought it a few years back.

That said, I am starting to feel proud of Detroit again. it took 70 years to slide into the abyss, maybe that long to climb out (maybe less, but well beyond my remaining time above ground). Its headed finally in the right direction.

 

[CBODY67]

When we went to the Buick birthday party in 2003, we flew out of Detroit Sunday morning after it was over. We drove down and got off onto the southern section Woodward Avenue, a bit horth of and then south of the Lodge Freeway. The difference in the two neighborhoods was striking. When we got further south, I noticed Grand Avenue and turned right. "Cadillac Place", which was the former GM headquarters was right there, with the Fisher Building in the next block. So we parked and walked into the rehabbed Fisher Building. Very nice to see it was done do well. Then we walked over to Cadillac Place (which was a property of "the state"). Interesting.

We continued downtown to see where Cobo Hall was (and the entrance to Windsor), but we continued west. Seeing some old, tall, industrial buildings, long abandoned. I knew we had "returned to the prosperous part of the area" when we saw "Fairlane Ford" and a Wendys. So we stopped for a bite to eat. I picked up a local paper and there was a picture where GM had donated some property to The State. So it seems that any surplus property the car manufacturers had and didn't need any more, was donated to The State of Michigan?

Then as we continued west, we drove past the Ford Headquarters, ending up at the Henry Ford Estate (a property of the neighboring Michigan State University, which owned and operated the estate). Being Sunday morning, and before any formal tours, the gate keeper allowed us to walk around the property. Knowing we didn't have much time before we had to be back at the airport for our flight back to DFW. VERY interesting! Ms. Ford's Cellar, plus the Battery Room!

When we flew in, got the National rent car and headed west before heading north at Lansing. Pulled into a Wendy's for a mid-afternoon lunch. Happened to be across the street of the Ford/Wixon plant! The old T-bird/Lincoln plant. We were amazed that we just happened upon it! Being that it was hidden behind lots of tall trees and such.

As it turns out, from what I've determined, you could spend several weeks just visiting/touring automotive industry places in MI. Might make for a nice summer vacation?

We also snuck off and went to Auburn Hills one Thursday afternoon. We had lunch ad a "Big Boy" restaurant, the likes of which we hadn't seen in TX since the earlier '70s. Then toured the Chrysler Museum. THAT was a neat experience! Plus seeing the massive engine dyno panel in the basement! I knew the story of the vehicles in the basement, too, which Chrysler found and restored for that space. I was proud of those that had saved all fo those things, for the many years, to preserve "the archives" of the Chrysler Corporation for later generations to enjoy and learn from. A great afternoon!

The Buick Centennial was a great event, too. Held on the grounds of The Sloan Museum in Flint.

LOTS of history in Michigan! Car History! Just got to find it!

I'm glad Detroit is on its way back. I certainly hope that Flint is similar, too!

CBODY67

 

[cm23uoc]

Not much love for the most recent historical sites in most cases. There's way more apreciation in preserving the remains from centuries back while erasing our immidiate past.
Our local municipal preservationist doesn't give a damn about architecture of the late 19th or early to mid 20th century.
We have more 17th and earlier century buildings around here than unmolested 50s homes for example.

 

[amazinblue82]

dated but still interesting i hope

 

[amazinblue82]

btw ... if interested, you could O/D on the automotive history of Detroit. Way beyond just the Big 3, there were dozens of car manufacturers, and thousands of suppliers.

Discuss Detroit: Old Car Factories - 1

this thread is VERY long. 24 pages, 60-100 posts/page, and lotsa pics.