Ford Presence At Michigan Central Station Remains Unclear

Over the past few years, Ford has been in the process of rejuvenating the historic Michigan Central Station site in Michigan, all with an eye toward transforming it into a future mobility hub housing many other companies – not just The Blue Oval. That list includes the likes of Google, Newlab, DTE Energy, Walker-Miller Energy Services, and many others, in fact. Meanwhile, Ford has been using Michigan Central Station as a venue for a drone delivery service pilot, celebrating NFL playoff victories, and perhaps even the site of a future hotel. Blue Oval chairman Bill Ford helped create a new endowment recently to help young folks in the area around Michigan Central Station – which is slated to open up in June – but even still, it seems as if Ford’s actual presence at the site remains a bit of a mystery, according to The Detroit News.

A mere seven weeks before the scheduled opening of Michigan Central Station, there are quite a few questions left to be answered, apparently – a list that includes how much of its footprint will be devoted to Ford’s own operations, zoning questions regarding its plans to build a hotel on top, or even what kinds of retailers will occupy space at the future site, though FoMoCo will reportedly occupy “several floors” of the building.

We do know that Michigan Central Station will ultimately host around 5,000 jobs – with roughly half of those coming from Ford’s own advanced technology teams – but that number is also expected to take years to reach. The automaker hasn’t yet shared details pertaining to these specifics, but sources indicate that at least one of its three business units – perhaps Ford Pro – could call that site home, as around 400 workers from its commercial-focused division are already in Corktown. In the meantime, Ford promises that it will share more details when Michigan Central Station officially opens up in a few weeks.

“Ford’s commitment to establishing a significant presence at Michigan Central Station has not changed,” spokesperson Ian Thibodeau said in a statement. “In June, Michigan Central and Ford will welcome the public into the station in celebration of the historic restoration of the iconic ground floor. We look forward to sharing more details about the next chapter of the station in June including tenants, public amenities and more.”

We’ll have more on Michigan Central Station soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for continuous Ford news coverage.