Hope everyone is having a wonderful day. Here is more on the Vanity Ballroom that I promised.
The Vanity Ballroom opened in 1929 on the eve of the stock market crash. It was the last ballroom that was to be opened in the city of Detroit. It was designed by Charles N. Agree, a local architect who also designed the Grande, to make people feel like they were at a Mayan temple, which I showed in my previous post. It was also built and maintained by the same person that built the Grande. Five nights a week the venue would have couples dancing on the 5,600 square foot maple dance floor. I talked about how the floor was a very important part of this venue because it was floating. This references to the dance floor being on springs and were therefore “floating” across the dance floor. This was an interesting location because although it had two grand bars, it did not sell alcohol. It fell to hard times when swing dancing became no longer popular and was mainly closed until it had the same fate as the Eastown and the Grande. It ended up housing many of the same acts as the both of them. The ballroom was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on Nov. 12, 1982 although Michigan does not recognize it as one. Here are more pictures I promised.
*Update 10/18/17*
The Vanity has recently been the subject of a revitalization project. There is talks underway that have it as a possible chance at restoration. The project was estimated at a cost of $8 million and calls for mixed retail on the first floor with hopes of restoring the second. I have not been by this building in a few years either so I am not sure how it is holding up. I do know that it has been secured better and is harder to get into.