Little Caesars Gathers Local Contracts for $150M Detroit HQ

By Barbra Murray

Little Caesars World Headquarters Campus Expansion (PRNewsfoto/Little Caesars)

Little Caesars knows how to commit. Currently developing a new $150 million headquarters expansion in Detroit, the largest carryout-only pizza chain in the U.S. is keeping it local. Little Caesars has awarded $56 million in contracts to Detroit-based companies for the development of the new 235,000-square-foot office building, which broke ground in September 2016. 

“As a Detroit company achieving global growth, we’re committed to a Michigan Made, Detroit Built project that creates significant business opportunities in the place we call home and brings jobs to the local workforce,” Christopher Ilitch, president & CEO of Ilitch Holdings, professional services provider to Little Caesars, said in a prepared statement.

Ninety-nine percent of the business for Little Caesars’ new headquarters tower—which is rising at the intersection of Woodward Ave. and Columbia St. in the $1.2 billion The District Detroit mixed-use development—has gone to Michigan-based firms, but Detroit companies are the big winner. Sixty-nine percent of the contracts for the project have been awarded to entities based in the Motor City. The group that’s been amassed for the undertaking includes construction manager Brinker-Christman; Midwest Steel; Blaze Contracting; Ben Washington & Sons Plumbing; and Denn-Co Construction. Dearborn, Mich.-based Great Lakes Mechanical is also on the list of contract recipients.

A taste of what’s to come

With a full team of contractors aboard, Little Caesars is making strides in bringing its new headquarters tower to fruition. Construction just commenced on the façade of the nine-story building, which was designed by Detroit-established SmithGroupJJR, the oldest continually operating architecture and engineering firm in the U.S. The structure’s east-facing exterior will take on the appearance of a giant assemblage of pizza servings, with 102 pieces of 14-foot-tall triangular glass resembling a slice.

Ypsilanti, Mich.-based National Enclosure Co. is tasked with making the giant pizza party a reality, and expects to complete the job in mid-January 2018. The unique façade will be the first of its kind in the world and will, as David Scrivano, president & CEO of Little Caesars, said in a prepared statement, “make our mark on Detroit’s skyline.”

Rebuilding Detroit

Little Caesars is hardly alone in its commitment to Detroit and the city’s revitalization. The city emerged from bankruptcy in December 2014, and has since seen a resurgence of development and corporate interest.

In September, commercial real estate firm Bedrock announced a $2 billion, multi-project plan that will bring millions of square feet of office, residential, retail and other commercial offerings to Detroit. Automotive products company Flex-N-Gate broke ground on its $95 million manufacturing facility in April, a project that marks the largest investment by an auto supplier in the City of Detroit in more than 20 years.

Little Caesars’ expansion project is on track to reach completion in the summer of 2018. The property constitutes the first newly-constructed, multi-story corporate headquarters tower to be erected in Detroit in more than 10 years, and the seventh such structure to be built since 1950.

Image courtesy of Little Caesars