DETROIT, Mich. – October 23, 2017 – The Detroit Pistons announced today that The Platform LLC has been selected as developer and owner’s representative for the new Henry Ford - Detroit Pistons Performance Center at the intersection of 2nd Avenue and Amsterdam Street in the New Center area of Detroit. The development will serve as the team’s practice facility and corporate headquarters and include a comprehensive sports medicine, treatment and rehabilitation facility managed by Henry Ford Health System.

The Detroit Pistons, Henry Ford Health System and The Platform selected The Christman Company and L.S. Brinker Co. to be the construction managers for all components of the development. Detroit architecture firm Rossetti is the designer of the buildings. These Detroit-based businesses are forming a powerful and experienced team to develop the new world-class facility. The development will include a parking garage to be shared with Henry Ford Health System and utilize public spaces to allow for community activities, networking receptions and other team hosted events.

“The Henry Ford - Detroit Pistons Performance Center will be a state-of-the-art facility serving our players and coaches, our franchise and the community for years to come,” said Arn Tellem, Vice Chairman for the Detroit Pistons. “Ensuring Detroit-based companies are directing the project management and construction process is imperative as we use this practice facility, headquarters and dedicated sports medicine complex as a cornerstone in our commitment to the city’s future.”

The performance center will house an estimated 175,000 square feet of office and training space featuring the most-up-to-date basketball equipment, with seamless accessibility for players and team medical practitioners to access injury diagnosis and rehabilitative treatment. Amenities are expected to include:

• Corporate front office space for business and basketball operations
• Innovative player locker room and lounge
• Full-service kitchen/dining facilities
• Spacious weight room facility with state-of-the art equipment
• Film and study meeting rooms
• Advanced training room capabilities with full hydro and cryogenic treatment systems
• Green space and courtyard locations for outside access and views of city
• Production studio and media/interview rooms
• Private and public parking structure to be used by both Detroit Pistons and Henry Ford personnel
• Dedicated Henry Ford Health System Sports Medicine Building – connected to the Performance Center

“We are proud to be selected as development manager for this important addition to the greater New Center area. Arn and his team have incredible vision and ambition for this new home of the Pistons in Detroit. Working with them, and the exceptional team of designers and contractors, is a great honor for our young company,” said Dietrich Knoer, President and CEO of The Platform. “This is the most exciting project we have taken on so far, given the impact of the Piston’s move back to Detroit and their commitment to the community.”

The Platform owns a portfolio of existing buildings and ground-up developments in New Center, Milwaukee Junction and TechTown. “We committed to being the driving force in promoting inclusive development in the city of Detroit. Working with the Pistons on this project is a natural fit given their intent to create a performance center that is accessible and welcoming to the community,” said Peter Cummings, Executive Chairman of The Platform.

Christman-Brinker, a joint venture between the Detroit office of The Christman Company and Detroit-headquartered L.S. Brinker Company, will serve as construction manager for the Henry Ford - Detroit Pistons Performance Center.

“This outstanding project represents a significant step forward in Detroit’s revitalization, with an immediate positive effect on the entire community,” said Larry Brinker, Jr., principal at Christman-Brinker. “It will be exciting to not only work on the project, but to watch its progress as a Detroit business owner and community member.”

“Major institutions like Henry Ford and the Detroit Pistons investing back into this community is truly what’s making the difference that Detroiters are now really beginning to feel,” said Ron Staley, principal at Christman-Brinker. “It’s literally game-changing, and we couldn’t be more elated to be working with the talented team the Detroit Pistons has assembled to bring this new building block of downtown Detroit to reality.”

Other current Detroit projects that Christman and Brinker are working together on include the Little Caesars World Headquarters Campus Expansion and the Mike Ilitch School of Business at Wayne State University.

The new Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center will create additional construction-related jobs in the short-term and provide significant economic impact for Detroit by way of city income tax and property tax revenues generated by the relocation of the organization’s business and basketball operations to the city.

About The Platform:
The Platform was established in 2016 when the acquisition of the iconic Fisher Building brought Peter Cummings and Dietrich Knoer together. With more than 60 collective years of experience—and a legacy of successful development projects in Detroit—they made a conscious decision to build a platform that would contribute to the city’s resurgence. The Platform’s vision includes transit-oriented mixed-used developments along the Woodward Corridor in the core of the city. But it also embraces the whole of the city, with commitments to certain outer neighborhoods that demonstrate the company’s commitment to inclusive and equitable development.

About Brinker-Christman:
The Christman Company, a Detroit-Based Business who recently re-opened an office in the Christman-built Fisher Building, was founded in 1894, and has been building in Detroit for 100 years. L.S. Brinker Company, a certified Detroit Headquartered Business and certified Minority Business Enterprise, was founded in 1993 and specializes in providing construction and management related services. Past projects together have included multiple Detroit Public Schools, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan BLUnite, and the Detroit Cornice and Slate building renovation.

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