Chrysler has a long-standing manufacturing presence within Detroit.
Chrysler Group will rename the old Dime Building in Downtown Detroit “Chrysler House” and move its Great Lakes Business Center and several corporate functions into the top two floors of the 23-story building. It is the first time Chrysler has had executive offices in downtown Detroit.
Chrysler is leasing nearly 33,000 square feet of space and, after it’s refurbished, about 70 people will move in. It’s largely a symbolic gesture now, but it’s important for the city of Detroit and the comeback car company that many had left for dead.
“It’s a name that reflects our intent to put down roots in Detroit’s downtown and to take a proactive role in building the neighborhood,” said Sergio Marchionne, Chairman and CEO of Chrysler Group.
Chrysler has a long-standing manufacturing presence within Detroit. It is in the process of reopening the Conner Avenue Assembly Plant in Detroit to manufacture the next-generation SRT Viper, shown earlier this month at the New York Auto Show.
Chrysler also operates the Mack Avenue Engine Complex on St. Jean Street and the Jefferson North Assembly Plant, which builds the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Dodge Durango. In 2013, Chrysler will begin preparing the plant to build a Maserati SUV off the successful grand Cherokee. Earlier this year, Chrysler said it would add a third crew and 1,100 new jobs at Jefferson North in early 2013. It has now pulled ahead the third shift to November of this year.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
