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Jim Skelly

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Posts posted by Jim Skelly

  1. 5 minutes ago, 46 woodie said:

    If it's a prototype that somehow got away, why wouldn't Ford want it back for their museum? Why wouldn't M.A.R.C. and M.A.F.C.A. want it for the Model A Ford Museum at the Gilmore in Michigan? The seller can tell us all he want's, if he can not prove and document the car, it simply does not exist as advertised!

    all good points; also, why didn't Ford keep the first Thunderbird, Mark II, Mustang and Cougar, and GM keep their 50 Millionth car and the first Toronado, and other such mysteries ... 🤔

  2. I went to a swap meet last Sunday in Monroe, Michigan.  Lot of parts looked like they were pulled out of a barn or swamp after decades.  There was no attempt to clean wheel covers, for example.  Few items had prices posted, and many parts in NOS boxes were not identified.  It would have been a total waste of time driving almost 40 miles if not for hanging out with my buddy and then having a nice meal afterward.  

  3. 18 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

    I realize that the old Hudson's Department Store

    has been torn down;  but in hindsight, it could have

    been preserved and restored and used for General

    Motors' office space.  I recall learning that it was such

    a large store, that it had at least 50 elevators!

     

    Buildings can last hundreds of years when properly

    maintained--as many Europeans recognize.  Why tear

    something down and then have to build all over again?

     

     

    At the time it was imploded, Downtown Detroit was a ghost town.  There were few restaurants open, many high-rise vacant buildings had closed since the mid-seventies, corruption in the city administration, high crime, etc.  No sane company or investors would want to do business there because employees wouldn't want to work there.  The original building opened in the late 1880s.  It would have been cool to just save that portion, but there was no market for Detroit real estate until after they went through bankruptcy.

  4. Hudson's closed in January 1983 after years of shoplifting and department closings.  My cousin and I went to the implosion with cameras.  Someone pointed to us thinking it was funny that we had face masks hanging from our necks to pull up just prior to the implosion.  Demolition dust was everywhere and blew over to a nearby parking structure where many people were partying.  A car drove down the street with its headlights on and the driver was using his wipers, which undoubtedly scratched the h___ out of the windshield.  We could taste grit on our lips.  A couple brought their infant in a stroller and no attempt was made to protect the baby.  I wonder if that infant has respiratory problems today.  I got a few good pictures but watching the video on my VCR was even better.

  5. Detroit had a dysfunctional City Council for decades and never seemed to work with the various mayors to simplify processes such as property owners trying to get construction and demolition permits.  Instead of getting all of the approvals in one department, a person had to go to multiple departments.  Then you had a corrupt mayor who ended up going to prison, city-owned, tax-foreclosed houses being rented out by Housing Dept. employees who pocketed the money, and other malfeasance. 

     

    Ordinance enforcement is still hit-or-miss.   Some properties have been blighted for decades with no apparent attempt by the city to do anything about it.   I recently visited a friend in Henry Ford Hospital near the old GM Building and the Fisher Building.  On West Grand Boulevard, which used to be one of the fanciest residential streets in Detroit a century ago, I saw two derelict boats partially sticking out in a front yard.  They looked to have been there for years.  

     

    The 1913 Michigan Central train depot is supposed to reopen in June.  It was the most visible abandoned building on the West side, but since Ford Motor Company bought it several years ago, it is being restored.  I believe the Packard Administration Building is going to be saved.  It will make a nice building for some company.  The entire property is a mess and was bad before the scrappers came.  The surrounding neighborhood could use new housing and shopping.  The core of Downtown is slowly and impressively being revitalized.  I never thought it would happen in my lifetime, but the Mayor and Council are working together to encourage development and investors have been investing since the bankruptcy.  

     

    Michigan Central

    • Like 1
  6. On 4/6/2024 at 8:05 AM, alsancle said:

    I still have it. Nothing a couple hundred thousand dollars in cash won’t clean up. Hoping I find the time and the cash at some point.

     

    there are two known Hollywood convertibles. A two passenger one, like mine, and a five passenger one. The spread in the serial numbers indicates they may have made three or four others. But they are not known to exist. There is also an identical Hupp 5 passenger convertible which is currently for sale.

    IMG_0749.jpeg

    I just found my photos from 2012 ... I forgot about the other convertible.

    HPIM0659.JPG

    HPIM0661.JPG

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