In the late 1980s, Irvin Yackness, the president of the Home Builders Association of Southeast Michigan, proposed the construction of a convention center in Detroit's suburbs to host the organization's expositions.[4][5] He approahced Blair Bowman, a local attorney, to develop the proposed center. In lieu of constructing a new facility, Bowman instead opted to lease a vacant warehouse near the I-96 interchange at Novi Road.
Constructed in 1966 as a factory for the Adell Corporation, a manufacturer of automobile door guards, the warehouse was closed when its owner, Franklin Adell, moved the company to Texas in the 1980s. Adell initially leased the building to Mohawk Liqueur, which used it to bottle Kahlúa for sale across the Midwest.[4] When Mohawk moved out, Adell agreed to lease the building to Bowman. Following extensive renovations, the Novi Expo Center opened in the space in March 1992.[6]
In 2000, Bowman announced plans to relocate the Expo Center to a new facility, to be built 1 1/2 miles to the west.[7]
The new, $18 million facility opened in August 2005 as the Rock Financial Showplace, under a naming rights deal with Quicken Loans, which, at the time, used its former name, Rock Financial, for its Detroit-area operations.[1][8][9] The company later expressed more interest in using the Quicken Loans name, which was nationally known, instead of Rock Financial, which was only well-known around Metro Detroit. Bowman instead terminated the original naming deal, and resold the naming rights to the Suburban Collection, a local automobile dealership group, in 2010.[1][10]
Following the new Showplace's opening, a portion of the original Expo Center was still used by the Motorsports Hall of Fame, until the Hall's collections relocated in 2009 to the Detroit Science Center. The building was then completely vacant, and remained so until its demolition in June 2012.[11][12] The land, still owned by the Adell family, would eventually be redeveloped into the Adell Center, a mixed-use complex including hotels, retail, and restaurants.
In 2013, a six-floor Hyatt Place hotel was constructed at the east end of the Showplace, along with a new ballroom and additional meeting space.[2] Later, in 2019, a two-floor expansion opened at the Showplace's west end, with additional event space.[13]
Facilities
Currently, the center has 340,000 square feet (32,000 m2) of exhibition and convention space.[2] To accommodate the state fair's anticipated growth, Bowman made several land purchases since 2012, totaling 43-acre (17 ha) of space, including a plot of land across Grand River Avenue and a 30-acre (12 ha) lot to the west.[3]
It has also been the location for Motor City Comic Con since 2011 due to the large space available for many VIPs, merchants, and other vendors and artists, making it a popular place for many cosplayers and other guests to see their favorite stars, artists, and get merchandise otherwise unavailable through stores and via online.
