DETROIT (WXYZ) — The City of Detroit has condemned the building in Eastern Market that partially collapsed over the weekend.
Located on the corner of Russell and Winder, the building was home to several businesses, including Jabs Gym, Detroit vs. Everybody, and Beyond Juice.
The incident happened suddenly around 11:40 a.m.
"It looks like we are in a 3rd world country... in a war zone," said Armond Rashad, Jabs Gym Owner.
One person suffered minor injuries, and several cars were damaged below when the bricks came down.
"We had a young kid in there... and just everyone was thankful the entire building didn't fall, and our lives were spared," said Rashad.
Detroit Fire Department confirmed no explosion or fire in the building, but the investigation is going on to determine the cause. In the meantime, businesses located inside the building have been uprooted.
"We can't even get in to get anything because of the condition of the building," said Tommy Walker Jr. founder of Detroit vs. Everybody.
Detroit vs. Everybody is a local clothing brand that Walker was gearing up to relaunch on November 19th.
"Complete new floor design, you can look in there you can see we had neon lights, covering the steps, stairways that no one has seen. It's a complete experience," said Walker.
Once the building is demolished, over $150,000 worth of merchandise will all be gone, along with the team's hard work for the grand opening, something Tommy really wanted his daughter to be proud of.
"She is 10th months. She won't be able to see it. I visioned her driving by, taking pictures with her, and walking into it," said Walker.
Jabs Gym has over a quarter million dollars invested in the facility.
"And we can't take it out now. So it's a total loss. That's not including like the build-out and all the other things like sentimental values being in this building," said Rashad.
In the meantime, the Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department have issued an emergency demolition order due to the dangerous state of the building, including the roof being structurally unsound.
In an official statement to 7 Action News, BSEED writes, "There is one alteration permit that is currently open for the first and second floor, and two other sets of plans have been submitted for this building. A determination has not been made as to whether or not that is the cause of the incident."
Ironically, Armond says he and the owner were already talking about much-needed repairs.
"There was a clear deterioration from the façade to the building. So we knew there was something up with the wall but we didn't know it was to this degree," said Rashad.
According to BSEED, structure inspections for commercial buildings happen every two years, and the building in question was set to have the inspection this year. Furthermore, the city hasn't determined a timeline for the demolition.
Detroit vs. Everybody has set up a GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/ad14a1a0
