This corner used to be filled with Dan Gilbert's workers before the pandemic.
For more than a year downtown, Detroit has seemed rather empty, full of of vacant offices due to Covid. That's about to change.
Dan Gilbert's Rocket Companies Inc. plans to start brining back thousands of workers to offices, beginning June 7, Crain's Detroit Business reports. The mortgage giant and real estate company is the city's largest employer, with divisions that include Quicken Loans, Rocket Mortgage and Bedrock Detroit.
The announcement is good news for restaurants and shops downtown that have been hurting. Some have closed.
"I'm very excited about the news," Sam Abdallah, owner of Downtown Snacks, a convenience store in the Ford Building on Griswold in downtown Detroit, told Deadline Detroit. "It's been tough. We've been praying a lot about them coming down."
Real estate division employees back when things were very different. (Photo: Bedrock)
Jay Farner, vice chairman and CEO of Rocket Companies, issued a statement Tuesday:
"Although we are going back to the office, we will be starting with a hybrid system. Initially, most of our team members will come in two or three days each week on alternating schedules, so we will constantly have a presence in our buildings."
"Over the past 15 months, Rocket Companies learned that our organization can be incredibly effective, set records and provide industry-leading client service — all while having the flexibility that comes with working remotely. We are pairing these lessons with the enhanced collaboration, innovation and relationship building that comes with being in person."
