After years of neglect, Detroit’s refurbished Michigan Central Station opens to the public [PHOTOS]

Michigan Central Station opened in 1914 and closed its doors in 1988. At its peak more than 4,000 people entered daily. On May 22, 2018 Ford Motor Company acquired the property and began to spearhead its rehabilitation

For most Detroiters, their relationship with the station has a lot to do with their age bracket. If you’re a baby boomer you have memories of riding the train to a destination or greeting family as they arrived back home. But if you’re a millennial, you may have snuck through the receiving doors in the early 2000s to photograph the graffiti-filled walls and deteriorating columns as the structure became the symbol of urban decay.

The 36-year closure took its toll on the 14-story building. More than 3.5 million gallons of water had to be drained out during the first 18 months. Much of the existing marble was restored and what couldn’t was patched and replaced. Harder-to-find materials like Mankato stone had to be acquired from Minnesota for the areas that couldn’t be restored. A 3-D printer was used to replicate ornaments, and two walls of graffiti were left intact while the rest was documented and cataloged. With a price tag of $740 million, Michigan Central Station’s renovation has been the most expensive in recent years.

Michigan Central will celebrate its grand reopening with a concert on Thursday, followed by guided tours. Additional retail shop openings in the space will be announced throughout the year.

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Star-studded Michigan Central concert includes Diana Ross, Jack White, Jelly Roll, and more: The free concert is executive produced by Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg and will air as a prime-time special on NBC