Rebuilding Detroit · in Herman's spirit

The Future

The hospital that carries Dr. Kiefer's name has stood empty since 2013. Here is the plan to bring the campus and its neighborhood back to life, where things stand today, and what his family hopes for, for our children and our children's children.

Aerial view of the Herman Kiefer Hospital campus in Detroit — The Herman Kiefer campus off the Lodge Freeway near Clairmount. Blackburn family collection.

The plan

In 2015 the City of Detroit chose developer Ron Castellano's Herman Kiefer Development (HKD) to reuse the closed health complex. The company describes it as a 38-acre, 862,000-square-foot campus of about a dozen historic buildings, including the 1928 Albert Kahn hospital, plus the former Hutchins and Crosman school buildings. With new construction, WXYZ reported, the site could hold as much as 2.2 million square feet.

The vision is a home for job-creating companies, marketed by Colliers International as the Creative Commerce Campus Detroit, alongside the rehab of 115 vacant homes in the surrounding Herman Kiefer neighborhood. The developer calls it one of the largest adaptive-reuse and neighborhood revitalization projects in the country, with a total investment that WXYZ reported could top $140 million.

The timeline

1911Detroit's contagious-disease hospital on Hamilton Avenue is named for Dr. Herman Kiefer at his son's request.
1928The main Albert Kahn hospital building opens on the campus.
2013The city closes the Herman Kiefer Health Complex; the buildings stand empty.
Mar 2014The City of Detroit asks developers for proposals.
2015City Council approves a land deal with developer Ron Castellano's Herman Kiefer Development (HKD).
Feb 2018HKD buys the campus and two nearby school buildings for $925,000.
May 2019HKD acquires 21 neighborhood houses, the first of more than 100 planned rehabs.
Sep 2020Colliers begins marketing the campus as the Creative Commerce Campus Detroit.
Jun 2021HKD reports its first 15 neighborhood houses rehabbed.
Jan 2025The city seeks to take the property and buildings back, saying obligations weren't met.
Jun 2025HKD files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Jun 2026HKD sues the City of Detroit and the Detroit Land Bank Authority in bankruptcy court. These are the developer's allegations; the case is ongoing.
Feb 2029The campus development deadline shown on the developer's own timeline.

Where it stands today

The campus plan has stalled. In January 2025 the city moved to take the property back. In June 2025 the developer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and in June 2026 it sued the city and the Detroit Land Bank Authority, claiming the city undermined the project. Those claims haven't been decided; the case is ongoing in federal bankruptcy court, and we update this page as it moves. For the developer's side of the story, see its own site at hermankieferdetroit.com.

The neighborhood

The work around the campus is real. HKD reports 95 Land Bank houses boarded up, 5.4 million pounds of debris removed, 40,000 hours of clean-up labor and dozens of homes under construction, by its own crews and by other developers. Neighbors have mixed feelings. Some, like resident Robert Talley, told WXYZ the neighborhood is coming back. Others, like Neighborhood Advisory Council member Renee Gunn, say residents felt shut out because houses and empty lots weren't offered to the people who already live there.

Any future for the campus has to work for the families on Taylor, Blaine, Clairmount and West Philadelphia. They have lived alongside these buildings for generations.

Jobs and training

The project has partnered with Detroit at Work and the Emerging Industries Training Institute (EITI) on free training for Detroit residents in carpentry, asbestos abatement and demolition work. To ask about current programs, contact Detroit at Work.

What the Kiefer family hopes for

My great-great-great-grandfather came to Detroit with almost nothing and spent sixty years taking care of its people. His son made sure the city's hospital carried his name. Whatever comes next for that campus, I hope it does what he did: put Detroiters first, create good work, and give the families of this neighborhood a real stake in it. Do right and fear no one.James Joseph Blackburn, Dr. Kiefer's great-great-great-grandson

We're following the campus and the neighborhood as part of Rebuilding Detroit. If you live nearby, worked or were born at Herman Kiefer, or are part of the redevelopment, we'd love to hear from you. Write to Jim.

Sources

More links: Herman Kiefer Resources · The hospital's history: The Hospital, 1911 to today