THE JEWISH CHRONICLE
East Side Embarks on New Era of Commercial Development
Modern building erected by Morris Schechter on Hastings Street raises standard of entire district. Quarters
for Bank and Drug Store up-to-date and complete in every detail. "Rose Apart-
ments" is new type of architecture destined to transform populous
section—Is tribute to energy and enterprise
of owner and architect.
T
HAT the East Side of the
"Fourth City" is keeping pace
with the indtistrial and civic de-
velopment of every other section of
Detroit is evidenced in the erection of
one of the finest commercial and
apartment combination buildings in
the city, known as the "Rose Apart-
ment" building, on Hastings Street.
The formal dedication of this struc-
ture was held last Sunday, and thou-
sands of people from all parts of De-
troit visited it and paid their compli-
ments to the owner, Mr. Morris
Schechter.
The building is situated on the
northwest corner of Hastings and Di-
vision Streets, in what is now the busi-
est section of the East Side. It is the
first example of modern construction
of its kind in the neighborhood and is
the forerunner of many more build-
ings that will transform the Hastings
Street section to a thoroughfare that
will be a pride to the city. It is a
tribute to the foresight and enterprise
of its owner, Mr. Morris Schechter,
and to the artistic skill of its archi-
tect, Mr. Maurice H. Finkel. It is
also an eloquent example of the indus-
try and intelligence of young men who
have risen in the space of a compara-
tively few years from obscurity to
prominence in their respective fields.
"ROSE APARTMENTS"
CORNER HASTINGS AND DIVISION STREETS
MORRIS SCHECHTER
Eight years ago Morris Schechter
graduated from the Detroit Technical
Institute after succesfully completing
a course in pharmacy. His good na-
ture and affability had made him very
popular with his classmates, who hon-
ored him with the office of secretary
of his class and later vice-president of
the alumni asociation. Mr. Schechter
had applied himself diligently to his
studies and graduated with high
scholastic rank.
With faith in the future of the East
Side district, Mr. Schechter established
a drug store on Hastings on the site
of his present beautiful building. He
met with immediate success by reason
of his resourceful business ability and
honesty in the treatment of all who
came in contact with him. Many of
his patrons were poor immigrants,
whose ignorance of modern American
life made them easy prey to the un-.
scrupulous, but Mr. Schechter, with
"service" as his watchword, went out
of his way to extend every aid that
would add to the comfort and enlight-
enment of his patrons, who were like-
wise his brethren. His pharmaceutical
business grew beyond his most opto-
mistic expectations. His reputation
for square dealing soon spread, and
many came to him to seek advice on
other matters, such as forwarding
funds to relatives in Europe and oth-
er financial problems. Mr. Schechter
was thus influenced to open a bank-
ing business, which is now one of the
most important financial institutions
on the East Side.
Success in his ventures prompted
Mr. Schechter to plan a beautiful
building to house his drug store and
bank, and the "Rose Apartments,"
built at a cost of $70,000, stands as the
monument to his sincerity of purpose.
The touch of commercialism impart-
ed by shops on the ground floor is
offset by the unity of design worked
out in brick, stone, copper and plate
glass. The owner's drug store and
bank occupy the shops opening on
Hastings Street. A prescription de-
partment in the drug store is reputed
to be one of the most thoroughly
equipped and complete in the city.
It is personally managed by Mr.
Schechter, with the aid of registered
pharmacists whose knowledge and
skill are complete by many years of
experience.
The banking quarters of the
Schechter Bank would do credit to
any branch of the largest banks in
the city. It contains the only safe
deposit vault system on the East
Side, which is fireproof and faultless
in construction and fills a long-felt
need in one of the busiest and most
populated sections.
Every modern convenience has en-
tered into the construction of the
building.. The floors are of terrazza;
counters, shelves and showcases of
marble, hardwood and plate glass.
Part of the second floor is to be oc-
cupied by the owner, no expense hav-
ing been spared in the finish and fur-
nishings of his suite of seven rooms.
There are ten other suites of four and
five rooms, with floors and finish of
hardwood, tiled baths and equipped
with wall beds.
Mr. Schechter is the son of Elijuhu
Schechter, well known as a Talmudic
and Hebrew scholar. He is a mem-
ber of Congregation Nosach Hoari,
the Knights of Pythias, the Guilath
Chesed of the Chesed Shel Emes So-
ciety, the Jewish Historical Society,
and he is a generous contributor to
every Jewish activity that stands for
the betterment of his people.
The success of Morris Schechter is
paralleled in the remarkable profes-
sional rise of the young architect who
designed the building, Mr. Maurice
H. Finkel, with offices at 309 Sun
Building. Although established in
Detroit but three years, he has drawn
plans for over 500 buildings of prac-
tically every size and description. He
was born in Russia, immigrating to
this country in 1905. Working dur-
ing daytime, he attended night classes
in the Cooper Union Institute of New
York, completing his course in archi-
tecture in 1913. He was a diligent
and apt student, and was rewarded
with a prize for efficiency and excel-
lence in the subject of Doric Order.
Among the many important struc-
tures for which he has drawn plans
may be mentioned the Max Jacob res-
idence on Kirby Street, cost $35,000,
a model of architectural beauty in res-
idence construction; the proposed
10-story apartment on Adelaide
Street to be erected at a cost of
$800,000, which will contain 220
apartments and be one of the largest
apartment buildings in the city; the
Avavath Achim Synagogue of Oak-
land, cost $50,000; the Labor Lyceum
on the East Side, to be erected at a
cost of $75,000, which will be one of
MAURICE H. FINKEL
the most beautiful labor temples in
the country.
The "Rose ilpartmcnt" building
stands not only as a monument to
the personal success of the owner and
builder, but is also a perpetual re-
minder to other young men that the
days of big opportunities to success
are not past.